Realities Away
by SukiAme
Summary: AU&AR: In one reality, Sasuke is a Ninja. In another reality, Sasuke is a teenager who goes to private school. When taken to a different life, how will they cope? Especially since one of them left his loved one behind. SasuNaru [on HIATUS]
1. Entry 01: 050204

**_Disclaimer: Naruto and all characters in the series Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Misashi. I don't own them, all I own is the fan-book and a few mangas._**

_Plot credit: I was thinking of an old fanfiction I read, way back when I never even heard of Naruto. There was a plot like this... I'm ripping them off, but that's how ideas spread._

_**I'll keep my A/N short and sweet: Like it, or die **  
Oh, and all the Genins are around 16 years old, and are now... Chuunin level._

**_WARNING: There are traces of Shounen-ai everywhere. Alt. Universe and Alt. Reality._**

---

**Title: Realities Apart  
By: SukiAme**  


"Go!" Sasuke commanded Naruto as he prepared to fight the three ninjas that appeared.

Naruto paused and stared incredulously at Sasuke, "I - "

"Go! One of us has to protect Yoshikawa-san!" Sasuke said again more forcefulness. Naruto opened his mouth to protest but Sasuke was already running toward the ninjas, "Don't stand there like an idiot! I'll catch up!"

Pressed with the urgency of the situation, Naruto took Yoshikawa's hand and began to run while Sasuke bought them time.

-

Sasuke kept the three in his sight while he fought, if he took his eyes off them, then they would go after the client. He was able to keep this up for a good fifteen minutes, but they kept moving and driving him toward the direction Naruto ran off. Then they temporarily hindered his vision by throwing a few smoke bombs.

_Damn._ Sasuke winced as he felt a particularly sharp kunai pierce his flesh and embed itself into his shoulder. The warm blood slid down his arm in a steady manner as soon as he pulled the tainted weapon off. When the smoke cleared, he sent a weak glare to the enemy ninja and collapsed on one knee from fatigue as he put the handle of his own kunai in his mouth. The other two were gone.

His opponent's eyes widened as he saw the black-haired boy begin perform a series of seals. There was something different about the boy though. As he opened his eyes, the previous cold night pupils was now a bloody crimson. 

A large amount of Chakra was gathered into the hand of the boy as he ran at a extremely high speed. A deafening chirping sound surrounded the area while the man watched the boy charged at him with a morbid fascination. The Chakra in the boy's hand was now visible and in the form of wild, ice blue lightening. His eyes widened in shock when he saw the boy aim his fist at him in a precise punch that he narrowly avoided. He was further surprised when he saw the boulder that the boy hit shatter in pieces from the attack. 

"Damn," The ninja murmured sounding mildly impressed, but he didn't want to waste time with the red-eyed Chuunin and decided to finish him off. He began to form his own seals, "Nice attack, Kid. But, I have a mission to complete, so I'm going to finish you off."

-

Off in a short distance away from Sasuke, a certain blond teenager was fighting off his multiple offenders while protecting a lavender haired woman who stood behind him as she clutched a cylinder tube.

Originally, Naruto believed that he had the advantage by creating several Shadow Clones, but the opponent was also able to produce a few clones himself. And that wasn't the only thing, Naruto was currently being outnumbered by two to one.

_Damn it, Sasuke. Stop dawdling and hurry up!_ Naruto thought viciously as another one of his clones disappeared in a poof when the enemy struck it with several shurikens. It wasn't that it was difficult maintaining several copies of himself while fighting, but it would be a hell of a lot easier if his partner was there to help him.

"Arghhh!" A scream of agony pierced the forest, shocking the fighters into stopping.

_Sasuke!_ Naruto thought with alarmed recognition. A strange wave of worry coursed through his body as he decided to end the fight. He ignored the spiritual alarms that were telling him to go to Sasuke. _Concentrate! The bastard is fine!_ He reassured himself.

The two assassins charged at Naruto with their weapons raised.

Naruto pulled his palm back and drove it into the abdomen of one man and then to the stomach of the other ninja. Naruto landed a short distance away from the two as he saw the insides of the dead men land with a sickening splat on the forest grounds while the blood oozed from the now decaying corpses.

"Yoshikawa-san, please come this way and stay close to me. I need to find my partner." Naruto beckoned the pale faced woman to him as he took her hand and quickly lead her toward the direction of the scream.

-

Naruto halted Yoshikawa when he saw a dead body.

Lying a few feet away from the body of the unknown ninja was Sasuke, whose face was contorted with pain. A bruise had formed on his cheek, and there was a little smeared blood that trickled from the corner of his mouth to his chin, and his clothes where torn and bloodied. Sasuke looked like he was on the bad end of a horrible fistfight but he was still breathing, and semi-conscious.

Naruto let go of Yoshikawa and walked over to his teammate. He kneeled next to Sasuke and propped him up so that Sasuke's back was resting against Naruto's leg while he held up his rival's head with his arm. Then he blinked at the strange attire that he wore. _Was Sasuke wearing a dress shirt and blazer at first?_

"Hey, Sasuke, you okay?"

Sasuke forced his eyes open and stared up at Naruto's face. He let out a small sigh of relief and brought his hand to the blond teen's face. "You're okay..." He paused as he struggled with consciousness, "I'm so glad," he murmured before he dropped his arm and lost consciousness.

-

Sasuke awoke in a strange room. Strange was an understatement, Sasuke's never seen anything so... genteel before, even being from a prestigious clan, they never had something so lavish. He pushed himself up from the feathery bed and winced when he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. Sasuke brought his hand to the bandaged wound and pressed down on it. _Fight pain with pain._

"Sasuke!" Sasuke looked toward the familiar voice and saw Naruto at the entrance of a door. The golden haired Naruto ran the dark haired teen's side. Naruto sat down on the bed next to Sasuke and inspected him. "Are you still hurting anywhere?" He asked with concern laced all over his voice.

"I'm fine, Dunce." Sasuke replied gruffly as he pushed Naruto away from his direct line of vision and looked around for his shirt. "Where are we? Did you complete the mission? Are those other ninjas dead?" Sasuke took a look at Naruto and frowned, "And why are you dressed in _that_?" He asked referring to the navy blue blazer, and white dress-shirt.

Naruto cocked an eye at Sasuke, puzzled that he asked all those questions. "First of all, I've told you hundreds of times to stop calling me Dunce. And I thought we were making progress with this relationship. Secondly, you're in your room in case you haven't recognize it yet." Naruto stood and gestured to his clothes, "And I'm dressed like _this_ because I came to see _you_ right after school so I didn't get to change because I was _worried_ about you." Naruto paused, "And what the hell are you talking about, mission and ninjas? We're not living in a manga you know."

Sasuke scooted to the side of the bed and stood up on the wooden floor as he tried to comprehend what Naruto said before he crouched on the floor in search of his shirt.

"This is not my room."

"Sasuke?" Naruto cautiously strolled up to him and stared closely at his eyes, then he back up looking miserable, "You've lost your memory haven't you? This is my fault... if I had been alert, those guys wouldn't have tied me up and you wouldn't be hurt. It must've been those hand motions that the guy was making. You can't even remember that this is your room. Do you remember me?"

"Naruto... I haven't lost my memories. I _know_ who you are." Sasuke scoffed, "It'd take a hell of a lot more than a kunai to my shoulder to forget _you_." Sasuke opened a door to what he assumed would be a closet only to find a bathroom. "Damn it, where's my friggin' shirt?" He cursed as he slammed the door shut.

Naruto gave him a slightly mocking smirk, "You seriously have no idea where anything is, do you?" Naruto asked as he received a glare from Sasuke, "And I still don't know how you got that cut." Naruto gingerly touched Sasuke's shoulder and rested his head on it, all traces of his smile was gone. "Sasuke, I'm sorry... For what happened."

Sasuke stiffened under the weight of Naruto's head. Naruto's closeness was a bit overwhelming for Sasuke and his hand twitched with a strange urge to hug the shorter of the two.

"Na-naruto, help me find my shirt first."

Naruto held back the flash of hurt he felt and stepped away from Sasuke before he gave a small smile.

"Sure."

-

"How did this happen anyway?" Neji asked without any inflation in his voice, "He looks like he was beaten pretty badly."

"Che." Naruto ignored Neji and glared at the motionless body of Sasuke. "I have no idea what happened, but I can't believe that Sasuke got beat so easily. Not only that, but I had to drag his ass all the way back here _and _complete the mission myself."

"So are you saying that I'm a part of you now?" Neji asked with a smirk only to receive a annoyed glare from the blond.

"You _know_ what I _meant_, Neji..."

A low moan came from where Sasuke laid and both young men turned to watch him awaken. A confused expression was etched on his face before he saw Naruto sitting next to him and broke into a small smile that quickly transformed into a scowl when he saw Neji standing behind the blond. He moved to stand only to feel the nonexistent pins and needles poke at him.

"You okay?" Naruto asked as he draped Sasuke's arm on his shoulder and wrapped an arm around Sasuke's waist to helped him stand up.

"Just a little sore," He replied as he lifted his head and met Naruto's cerulean eyes, "They didn't hurt you, right?"

"I can take care of myself, unlike _some_ people who either runs away or gets hurt when he's not being watched." Naruto looked pointedly at Sasuke, "Which reminds me, I couldn't find your shuriken pouch or anything else. Not even your forehead protector, which I don't think is a good thing. And I don't know why you chose to wear _that_," Naruto looked up and down at Sasuke's somewhat torn attire, "For a mission. It's not like you're going to a formal party or anything."

A frown crossed Sasuke's face as he wondered what Naruto was talking about. "Why would I have a forehead protector? And I thought you liked it when I wore our school uniform."

To the other side of Naruto, Neji felt his eye twitch in a odd manner as he watched Sasuke give Naruto a look that Neji was unfamiliar with. It made him uncomfortable and gave him a strange desire to wring Sasuke's neck.

"You are making zero sense right now." Naruto informed Sasuke as he backed away and headed for the door. "I'll just get you some water and food or something."

"I'll come with you," Neji said suddenly as he realized he didn't want to stay in a room alone with Sasuke.

"No, it's fine. I can't stand staying in that room anymore. Gotta move." Naruto said over his shoulder as he closed the door behind him.

A silence enveloped the room as Neji turned around and watched Sasuke, who glared at him with distaste.

Annoyed by the look that the younger teen sent him, Neji snapped, "What?"

"I thought you gave up on Naruto when he and I got together."

Neji was thoroughly confused by Sasuke's statement. "What?"

"I've told you before, Hyuuga, he's mine and you don't touch what's mine."

"What?! Who ever said that Naruto was yours?! What makes you think I even _want_ him?" Neji stopped his enraged ranting and stared through Sasuke, "You're not Uchiha." Neji said suddenly, "You're him, but you're _not_ him. Who are you? Or more accurately, what happened on that mission?"

Sasuke's glare was replaced by a thoughtful stare. He took a look around the room and then back to Neji, "First, you tell me where I am, then I'll tell you what I remember."

-To Be Continued? Maybe...

---

_Hm... I don't know. This was a spur of the moment thing. I'm not sure whether to continue it or not because I'm sure it was confusing. Inspiration? Nonexistent, so I don't think so. There is a plot, but I'm too lazy to plan it out. Even if I don't continue, review and criticize? Hohoho Please excuse all grammar mistakes because I'm a one person team, har har har. I think I'll get around to it... eventually. If it's a stupid idea, someone just tell me, and I'll take it off._


	2. Entry 02: 060204

_A/N: Thanks to the encouragement by all you fanfiction readers out there... I love you all. However... now I feel bad because I'm not sure whether I can live up to the quality that I had in the first chapter. I tried by best... but that never gets me anywhere. Anyway... due to multitudes of encouragement to eventually continue, eventually is here! Enjoy._

_**WARNING: This fic contains shounen-ai [hints] and semi-sarcastic humor. And is an Alt. Reality and Alt. Universe, they're older and have matured... I get to warp the timeline, so blame OOCness on any of the aforementioned information.**_

_---_

**Title: Realities Away  
By: SukiAme  
Entry: 02**** - Sasuke and Naruto are What?!**

"Well... You're in Fire Country... one of the five Shinobi countries. This specific place is called Hidden Leaf Village and is the center of Fire Country. A capital city, if you will." Neji watched Sasuke's reaction shift from surprise to puzzlement before he continued to speak.

"This is your house. Or, to be precise, this is Uchiha's house." Neji paused a moment waited for the information to sink in the other boy. After a few minutes of silence, Sasuke slowly nodded his head, and indicated for Neji to continue.

"You're a ninja, Uchiha. Or... the other Uchiha is a ninja." Neji stood and walked over to a desk against the wall. He picked up a frame with a photograph in it and brought it over to the boy on the bed. "This," he said as he pointed to a smiling silver-haired man with a mask covering his face save one eye, "Is Kakashi. He was Uchiha's teacher when he was a Genin (a low level ninja). Uchiha's team consisted of Haruno," he pointed to a pink-haired girl who stood between Sasuke and Naruto, "Himself, and Naruto."

The photo found its way to the desk again and Neji turned to faced Sasuke before he gave a simple demand, "Now, tell me who you are."

-

Sasuke followed Naruto through the huge mansion. He was completely silent while Naruto stopped occasionally to point out a specific room, and nodded as Naruto named the areas to remember the information.

The blond casually waved to a pair of glass doors and, with a blush, informed him that it was the garden.

"Do you remember what happened there?" Naruto asked quietly as he glanced through the glass planes of the door.

A puzzled look crossed Sasuke's eyes and he asked, "What do you mean?"

"I suppose not," Naruto replied dejectedly before he turned away and continued to another room, "It's okay... I guess..."

Sasuke walked after Naruto into a dining room.

Against one wall was a cabinet with intricately decorated china plates, gleaming silver silverware, and flawless crystal wine glasses that lined the interior of the mahogany display case. In one corner was a pillar-like pedestal with a vase of wild flowers, arranged to look like a bouquet in a bowl. In the middle of the room was a beautifully polished, redwood, table with a few chairs that were pushed in at one end of the table; and above the table, a crystal chandelier hung from the roof. Along the wall opposite the cabinet were windows that stretched the waist to the high ceiling and overlooked the garden.

"This is the dining room." Naruto said dully.

A small snap reached Sasuke's ears and within the next millisecond, he pushed Naruto over and onto the wooden floor. "Get down!" As Sasuke fell forward and shielded Naruto, he heard several whizzing sounds fly past his head and then a pattern of loud donks as the projectiles struck the wall.

Then a slow clapping filled the rooms, it's loudness magnified as the sound waves bounced off the walls. Sasuke pushed himself off the blond and searched for the source of applause but froze in horror to see Itachi leaning against the frame of the entrance, watching the two listlessly.

"Itachi." Sasuke spat viciously as he unconsciously activated his sharingan.

"Impressive, Little Brother." Itachi said condescendingly, "I didn't expect you to move that quickly after three days of inactivity. It seems that I'm wrong. Such a pity."

Sasuke unconsciously reached for his kunai only to realize that he had yet to find them or his clothes.

Itachi slowly strolled over to the two and past Sasuke before he stopped in front of Naruto. Sasuke tensed up as Itachi lifted his hand and hovered over Naruto who watched the older man curiously. Then Itachi patted Naruto's yellow hair as he did something that Sasuke never remembered his brother doing before. Itachi smiled. It wasn't a mocking smile either, it was a little tired, but it contained a hint of care.

And then, without a second glance Itachi walked toward the kitchen, "Stay for night, Naruto-kun. Mother and Father won't be home, and I'm sure that Sasuke would be delighted."

"That... was... Itachi..." Sasuke said in disbelief after Itachi had left the room, "Why... is... he... here...? And what did he mean with that comment?"

"Well... he doesn't want to move out since your parents are barely home and he gets to live here without having to do anything." Naruto answered as he quickly strolled toward the entrance from which Itachi came.

_Am I dreaming?_ Sasuke wondered as he followed Naruto into the living room and then into a small library with a beautiful furniture piece and a fireplace.

Next to a velvet, wine colored loveseat was a small stand with a lamp and a 8x10 photograph in it. The people in the photo was Sasuke, Itachi, and [to Sasuke's surprise] their parents. Sasuke picked up the frame and traced the silhouette of his mother. _Or maybe Konohagakure was a dream._ Sasuke shook his head as he placed the picture back on the stand, and then touched his shoulder to reassure himself, _But, this wound is real. But then again, it could've been caused by something else. Then... maybe the Ninja world never existed. Yes, that would make sense. But I have no memories of this place._

"Naruto, I'm awake aren't I?" Sasuke inquired, catching the attention of the other boy who nodded in response, "But, I don't remember anything from this life."

Naruto watched Sasuke's abject face with a sense of helplessness. _I can't do anything but tell him what I know of his life, and that's not very helpful. _

"Sasuke," Naruto began as he looked into the coal black eyes of the other boy, "Don't dwell in the past. Live in the present."

Sasuke didn't say anything. After a long time of contemplation he sighed, _I can't help hating Itachi... Even if it was a dream._ Sasuke jerked in realization of something he'd forgotten, "That's right, you didn't answer me at first. What did Itachi mean when he said I'll be "delighted" if you stayed for the night."

A light crimson was painted on Naruto's face before he turned and attempted to leave the room but Sasuke reached out and stopped him. "Naruto..."

"He didn't mean anything by it!" Naruto snapped as he jerked his arm away from Sasuke, "If you don't remember, then just drop it!"

"What are you getting so angry for?"

"Nothing! I'm not angry!" Naruto yelled loudly.

"Then tell me what he meant!" Sasuke demanded just as hotly, "I have no idea what's happened in my life, you can at least tell me the truth about something as trivial as that!"

"Truth? You want the _truth?! You_ can't handle the truth! Besides, what do you care if you think it's so trivial?!"

"How do _you_ know I can't handle the truth?!"

Naruto lapsed into silence. "... ... ... Fine. I'll tell you on the condition that you swear your won't freak out or kick me out."

When Sasuke nodded, Naruto gave a incoherent mumble.

"What?"

"If you didn't hear me, it's not my fault."

"Naruto." Sasuke growled.

"Right, I'm gonna go now." Naruto said warily as he tried to make his way to the exit.

"Naruto!" Sasuke growled again as he reached out and held on to Naruto's arm to prevent the aqua eyed blond from leaving. "Talk." He demanded.

"No!" Naruto replied defiantly as he tried to wretch his arm away from him.

"NARUTO!"

Naruto shoved Sasuke against a bookshelf and pinned him against it with the arm that Sasuke previously held. "Damn it! You want to know? You_ really_ want to know?!Fine, I'll show you," Sasuke opened his mouth to ask Naruto what the hell he meant but before the words came out, Naruto's own mouth covered Sasuke's in what some would label as a kiss.

-

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke and I go to Kimori High School. I live on the outskirts of Sapporo in Japan." Sasuke paused and withdrew a black wallet from a backside pocket.

When he opened it, the first thing Neji noticed was a picture of Naruto grinning like the oblivious fool he was, with an arm draped over a miffed, but smiling Sasuke's shoulder. He raised an eyebrow at the wallet-sized photo and leaned closer to the leather pouch.

_Is Uchiha blushing?_

"What are you doing?" Sasuke questioned Neji as he took out a card and snapped his wallet shut.

Neji didn't say anything and moved back to his original position.

Sasuke gave Neji a suspicious glare and then flipped the card in his hand up and showed it to Neji, "This is my student identification pass to prove my existence."

"Do you remember what happened before you came here?"

Sasuke stared impassively at Neji, as if judging him.

They were silent for a while before Sasuke finally spoke, "I was in a... fight... Naruto was in danger, there was this group of people... In a way, it was my fault. There was this man, he did something with his hands... there was a flash of light and I blacked out for a few seconds. And then, I woke up and saw Naruto," Sasuke's eyes flickered to the door and then stared into his hands. "And now I'm here. Maybe...?"

"Maybe what?" Neji asked, encouraging Sasuke to continue speaking.

"Those movies of different realities, and realities colliding? Have you ever seen one?"

"Realities colliding?" Neji murmured as he placed a hand under his chin, "I've read somewhere that there's a possibility where there is a another copy of everything somewhere out there. Under a substance called anti-matter? In which the two, matter and anti-matter are like opposite copies of one another, but if they ever meet, would both be destroyed —cancel each other out." 1

"... Meaning that this is another reality from the one which I am from." Sasuke concluded.

Both boys were submerged in his own thoughts, trying to comprehend the situation.

Neji glanced at Sasuke's thoughtful expression and then stood up. He strode over to the window and then moved the curtains aside to stare outside at the glowing afternoon slowly sink into a cool evening. Neji squinted his eyes and glared at the brightness of the fiery red color of the sun in irritation. _If only there was someone who knew something about this._

"Hey, Uchiha?" Neji asked without turning to look at him, "That picture in your wallet, Naruto-?" Neji trailed off and let the unfinished question hang in the air.

Sasuke's coal-black eyes narrowed in a nettled possessiveness. "Back off, he's my boyfriend." He declared as a light rose colored blush graced his cheeks, " 'sides, you'll never meet him anyway."

"Like I said _before_, who said I _want _him?!" Neji snapped as he turned and sent Sasuke a sharp glare.

"Naturally, I assumed." Sasuke answered somewhat haughtily, receiving another cold glare from Neji.

_Would it be _so_ bad if I cut off his air supply for a short while?_ Neji wondered as he continued to glower at the preppy looking boy.

"The Hyuuga from my reality is a lecherous pervert who incessantly watches Naruto like a stalker. That means that you're a complete pervert as well."

_No one will miss him if he's gone._ Neji thought treacherously as activated his Byakugan.

"You know what, Sasuke?" Naruto said as he opened the door and entered the room with a tray and large bowl, causing Neji to jump at the unexpected appearance of the blond, "You have no instant foods in this house at all."

Naruto was astounded by the lack of convenience and didn't bother to hide his aggravation at having to actually cook something for his teammate. "Such a pain in the ass to cook.2" He strolled over to Sasuke and held out the tray for him to take. After a moment, Naruto, much to his displeasure, still held the tray, "I ain't gonna feed you, you still have limbs." He stated simply and shoved the tray into Sasuke's hands.

Sasuke gave Naruto a small smile while Neji's mouth was slightly a gape in bitter resentment at having lost his chance to beat down Sasuke.

"Say, Neji, why do you have the Byakugan on?" Naruto asked as he faced the long haired teen.

"Uh..."

-To be continued...

---

1 I learned this when I was in the 6th grade. My teacher, for some bizarre reason, decided that idiotic 12 year olds were able to comprehend quantum physics, atomic structureand whatnot. I didn't understand half the things that the videos talked about. But I remember that there is a possibility that there is another universe out there composed of anti-matter, exactly the same as us, but anti.

2 Naruto has hung around Shikamaru too much.

_Hey, I completed a chapter. I seriously think that I'm confusing people with the two different realities. Should I insert something to indicate which world it is taking place? Again, please excuse my grammatical errors unless it's so bad that it's making you cringe, then tell me so I can fix it. _

_Anyway, whether it be good or bad, Finals are in erm... tomorrow? I had my lit and Japanese finals already... I killed Jpn pt I but I think I saved myself in pt II. I did okay on one of my 2 essays for lit... ... I screwed it all up and I still have to study for geo tomorrow, and bio the day after. sigh_

_Anyway, please review and criticize, and most importantly let me know if there's a mistake. Flame if you like but tell me a non-bias reason to why you hated it. And lastly, thank you to Kurai-kodoku, Cheryl-chan, Falcon-Rider, Karariona, Jiyu Hatell Kodai, Sasha, Iceheart19, Moeko, Ayako, someone, Chisama, Neji Ramen, kurokioku, miki, razie, Watermelon Gal, The La/=/er, Prodigy-X3-Bombay, and bread. I don't think I would've written this chapter had you not encourage me to continue..._


	3. Entry 03: 070204

**My writing is deteriorating along with my grammar and vocabulary, I apologize. But, here's the next chapter. Enjoy.**

**Warning: This is Slash and contains OOCness; if you haven't already gotten it by now, I'm worried for your intelligence level.**

* * *

**  
  
Title: Realities Away   
By: SukiAme   
Entry: 03 – Shocking Discoveries **

  
_**Kishimoto-verse**_

"-and that's why I had the Byakugan on." Neji concluded his long lecture that involved poisonous mosquitoes, small ticks and something about Lyme disease. Naruto stared vacantly at Neji while Sasuke seemed to have fallen asleep long after he finished the tray of foods that Naruto had brought.

A frown was etched on Neji's face before he stepped toward the blond boy. He waved a hand in front of blank aquatic eyes but received no response, not even a blink.

"Naruto," Neji said softly to catch the teen's attention but to no avail. He turned to Sasuke's sleeping form and noticed the deep breathing patterns of both the brunet and blonde. _They're asleep? After my capricious speech in which I made everything up on the spot, they fall _asleep_?! How dare they?! Vengeance will be mine!_ Neji brought his hand up to perform hand seals. When he saw the glittering hands of his wrist watch his eyes widened and he dropped his hands, _Oh, fudge! I'm late!_

_-_

A loud slam woke Naruto and he groggily looked up to see an empty room with a peacefully sleeping Sasuke.

A stinging sensation in his eyes alerted him that his eyes were dried so he forced his eyes shut in such a fashion that he felt tears at the corner of his eyes. He brought a fist to his eyes and rubbed it harshly as he suppressed a yawn. He stood to stretch his stiff muscles and stared at Sasuke's sleeping form for a moment.

Nose wrinkled in annoyance, Naruto muttered a soft, "Che," as he headed toward the door and murmured, "Neji should work at a hospital and bore patients to sleep."

-

**Alter-verse**  
  
Sasuke's eyes widened in surprise and disgust when he realized that Naruto had purposely kissed him. With more strength than he thought possible, Sasuke sent a punch to Naruto's face breaking both the contact and a black lamp that rested next to a leather armchair.  
  
Naruto stumbled over the armchair and stared up to Sasuke's livid face. The hurt was evident in his eyes but it was masked by a hard glare of irritation. He pushed himself off the soft chair and stood up to straighten his clothes.

"I'm leaving," Naruto announced abruptly as he angrily trudged to the exit of the library. But before he completely left Sasuke alone, he muttered a distinctive and bitter, "Jackass."  
  
Sasuke leaned back as the wall shelf supported his weight. He brought his arm to his mouth and rubbed it like a madman. His eyes were hard as he focused his stare to the broken lamp. He lowered his arm and slid down to the floor, completely appalled by the entire incident.  
  
He wasn't twelve anymore and gagging would've proved suspicious so he settled for the next best thing to express his bewilderment in a manly fashion that didn't involve brawling, "... the hell?"  
  
-  
  
"Okay," Sasuke mumbled as he ransacked his supposed room in desperate hope of finding his ninja clothes and forehead protector. "Konoha was definitely not a dream." On the large full-sized bed were his weapons holster and the few kunai and shurikens that he hadn't used on the mission.

He'd found them lying at the end of the second floor hallway shortly after he'd left the library and fully intended to retreat to his room. When he got there, apparently, a trap was set up and he'd nearly fallen into a hole that apparently, had a watery floor because when the slipper he wore fell in, there was a loud splash followed by several vicious snapping sounds. He never saw the bottom of that dark pit.

And that wasn't the end of it, as soon as he picked up the weapons on the floor, he allegedly activated another trap because a cast iron cage fell around him, and trapped him like an animal. That's where the various techniques from years of ninja training came in handy; that and a basic knowledge of thermo-science.

Sasuke sighed as he threw open a closet door and tossed out anything that he didn't recognize as his own which mainly consisted of clothes and... more clothes. Growling with annoyance, he moved to his next target and yanked open a white painted wooden drawer. He reached in and moved the cotton soft fabric of the various shirts and paused when he felt a cool metal graze the tips of his fingers.

_My forehead protector?_

He looked in the drawer and saw a golden box that looked like it was frequently used. Its exterior was rusted and there were dents on the cover and the body of the box which made it looked as if it has been thrown several times.

Sasuke lifted the box and discovered a book underneath it. He easily tossed the box onto his bed before he lifted the book out and read the faded gold letterings on the leather bound book.

"_**Uchiha Family: Purpose and Secrets to Success**,"_ Sasuke read the title before he flipped the heavy cover to a table of contents. His eyes widened at the subheadings of the multi-chaptered book.

"'Chapter One: Training the Body of the Phantom Thief'?!" Sasuke flipped the a few pages and reached the introduction, "_**If you're reading this, then you're a member of the Uchiha family. If you're not a member of the Uchiha family, what the hell are you doing with this book?! Now then, since you're reading this, that means that you're about to embark on the family's trade of becoming a Phantom Thief**_. Thief?! Then all those traps-"

Sasuke flipped past the twenty page long introduction and reached the first chapter, "_**Set traps in the house in unexpected places so that the learner will get used to anything the police may throw at him or her. Be prepared for all types of danger?** _What the hell?_"_

Sasuke stared at the book before he snapped it shut as he began to chant a mantra in his head, _didn't see it. Never saw it. Though it _would _explain the clothes._

Once the book was buried under the pile of clothes again, Sasuke plopped on his bed and opened the box.

There was simple black hard-covered spiraled notebook on top of many other miscellaneous objects in which several of them were photos. Sasuke picked one up and stared at the picture. The people in the photo were of people he knew, and people he didn't. He looked at the tents in the picture and the people standing over a open fire. He flipped the photograph around and found the words, "Camping: Naruto and me fell into the lake and got sick the next day."

Now I feel like I'm prying into someone else's life, Sasuke thought as he placed the photo on the bed and flipped open the black notebook. _Journal of Uchiha Sasuke_ the first page read. _I wonder if I'm still prying?_ He wondered as he flipped to the first page and began to read.

-

**Kishimoto-verse**

Sasuke's brows furrowed in frustration as he dug through the drawers of the wooden desk at the side of the room. He moved the various objects in the drawer in vain search of a map, and what he hoped more, something that would tell him more about the life of this other Uchiha Sasuke. But there was nothing aside from the bare necessities that were required for one to live. That was about it. There was nothing else.

"Hm..." Sasuke slid the drawer shut and glanced around the room. Everything was neatly in place and there was nothing out of the ordinary about the room. He moved over to the bed and frowned as he brought a hand to his chin as he took another look around the room.

Sasuke moved toward a bookcase and stared at the various scrolls and books, _Geez, everything here is so impersonal... What's with this guy?_ He brought a finger and hovered over the myriad of reading material as he skimmed the titles. He stopped in front of a flimsy book carefully tucked away between two history books. Carefully taking the flat book out, Sasuke looked at the shiny film over the white cover and gazed over the title.

"Ah-ha! Years of meaningless thievery has finally paid off!" He exclaimed. His eyes widened as he jerked at this out of character outburst. Taking a habitual scan of 'his room,' he straightened up and cleared his throat, "Ahem, right."

He glanced around the room again, before he sat at the desk to read the book. "**_The little tot's guide to the ninja world_. _Learn the geography and history of the ninja world_**."

-

"What do I do now?" Sasuke wondered as he closed the book. He stretched his arms and stood up exhausted by the hour spent memorizing the maps and information in the book. He walked over to the opened window and stared into the bright afternoon as he let out a sigh, "How am I going to get home?

"I miss my room; I miss my bed; I miss my Naruto; Hell, I even kind of miss Itachi," Sasuke frowned as a mental picture of his brother parading around the house setting traps for him came to mind, "... yeah... I don't really miss those crazy things around the house, but I still kind of miss him.

"... And now I'm talking to myself," Sasuke sighed again before he headed toward the exit. "I suppose I should ask someone about this, but then again, I should probably be inconspicuous as possible since who knows what might happen. They might abduct me and try to experiment on my mind and body." He frowned and shook his head, "I've been watching way to many movies."

Sasuke shut the door behind him and began to walk down the streets. A strong breeze picked up and blew a cloud of leaves around Sasuke. The brunet blinked and stared at the Naruto who seemingly appeared from nowhere.

Naruto grinned when the leaves settled and waved two fingers up in greetings, "Yo!"

"Naruto," Sasuke answered in surprise, "Wha-"

"You recovered yet?" He interjected with a light (concerned) tone.

"Yeah, pretty much," Sasuke answered suavely as he took a step toward the blonde, "Are you worried about me?"

Naruto shot Sasuke a glare before he scoffed, "You wish."

You have no idea, Sasuke thought as he began to walked away with a smirk, fully aware of Naruto watching him.

"Hey, wait a sec!" Naruto called after him as he stopped Sasuke from behind, "Sakura-chan was worried about you. She wanted to ask you if you'll-"

"No," Sasuke answered immediately without listening to the request. He continued on his stroll while Naruto trailed after him.

"You didn't even listen to her question yet!" Naruto grumbled as he grabbed a hold of Sasuke. Naruto's aquatic eyes narrowed as the onyx color of the brunet's eyes bore dully into his own. "Do you not like her? 'Cause you really suck of you don't see how great Sakura-chan is."

"Do _you_ like her?" Sasuke retorted.

Naruto raised an eyebrow and stared disbelievingly at Sasuke, "You're kidding me, right? How can I _not_ like Sakura-chan?"

The dark haired teen grimaced before he turned and continued to walk while Naruto trailed after him at a leisure pace. "Oh?" Sasuke asked disinterestedly, "What exactly do you like about her?"

"She's smart, pretty, nice and she smells good," Naruto told Sasuke with a smug grin.

Sasuke turned his heels and stared at Naruto with a befuddled and scandalized look as he pictured the girl in the picture Neji had shown him, "What?! You think that _that_ pink haired wench is attractive?!"

"Hey, don't call Sakura-chan a wench!"

"Whatever, I don't care; leave me alone," Sasuke growled bitterly as he resumed his fast paced walk leaving Naruto staring after him bewildered by the tone of his teammate.

"Sasuke!" Naruto called as he watched the hunched over sixteen year old drift further from him. "Sasuke!" Naruto's irises looked up at the clear blue sky and he sighed. He stared at the retreating back of his partner again and muttered rolling his eyes, "Immature Bastard."

-

_**Alter-Verse**_

The magenta glow of dusk pierced through the glass panes of the tall windows into the messy bedroom of one Uchiha Sasuke. However, the said Uchiha Sasuke was in fact sitting on the large bed in the strange room of a rich person whom he's never met before and probably never will. Before him was a opened golden, tin box whose broken lid laid forgotten beside him.

On the lid were few photographs that were perhaps of interest to the teen but at the moment, he was engrossed in the writings within a black notebook. His pale cheeks were singed a baby pink of envy as he read the neatly messy scrawl of the journal while his lips was pursed to a thin line of disapproval at the lifestyle of the owner of the journal.

> _**April XX, 20XX  
It was the first day of school today, this new school is... different. There are a lot of people and the teachers kept mentioning Oniisan when they realized I was an Uchiha. That was annoying. Don't they realize I'm not him? Stupid Oniisan. As if it isn't enough that he tortures me without him actually being there, Mother and Father called home today telling me I have to begin to steal what they tell me to.**_
> 
> _**April XX, 20XX  
There's this annoying blond kid in my class. He's a complete idiot, got the lowest scores for the Entrance Exams, and everyone doesn't like him. I don't know why, but he pisses me off with that cheery attitude of his. His name's Uzumaki Naruto.**_

Sasuke skimmed the next few pages that involved school, theft and almost being caught when his eyes caught a particularly messy entry: 

> _**August XX, 20XX  
Last night... I had a very strange dream. It was beyond strange. I was at a library and I was looking through it when I saw Naruto trying to figure out a math problem so being the kind person I am, I decided to solve it for him and rub it in his face. Then this person who I thought was Hyuuga appeared next to him and began to whisper. Naruto laughed at something that Hyuuga said and Hyuuga leaned in and kissed him. I don't know what was wrong but when I woke up, I felt... bad. I don't know what it is, I've never felt this way before. Maybe I miss him? I mean, I haven't seen him since vacation began.**_

Sasuke lifted his head from the journal and stared out the window at the night and then at the digital red lights of the alarm clock by the side of his bed. His eyes widen when he realized how late it was. He rubbed his eyes and decided to read one more entry before he would shower and sleep. He flipped through the seemingly uninteresting pages before a shaky and hardly legible entry made him pause. 

> _**September XX, 20XX  
I... think I'm attracted to Naruto.**_

That was all the entry said but was enough to leave Sasuke with his mouth hanging open. 

To be continued...

* * *

_Good news, I passed all my exams with a decent grade! Bad: I'm currently attending summer school (thank you graduation requirements). I'm quite bitter. Okay, I also apologize for the lack of updating because I rewrote this chapter several times. I slaved away at this and I'm still not satisfied... but it's been a month so... I feel like I should update. Sorry about the quality, I think I'm getting worst?_

_Anyway I would like to give my thanks to the following for commenting: **The La/=/er** (**I'm glad you didn't forget the fic last time, but you probably forgot it by now You made a good point about Sasuke in the last chapter, I'm hoping I can slowly fix that**), kurokoiku, Ookima, **Iceheart19 (I hope I answered the projectiles thing in a hopefully semi-believable manner and you flatter me though I wish I could get that many reviews. Pervy-Neji... Hm, there's an idea**), Mister Pineapple, Kalariona, Dearest, catc 10, Kuroi Hikari, moonlight2, Twinkie D, Eikou, Naruto Otaku, KizuPL, Misosouplover, **miki (I too thought that the ItaNaru hair scene was cute, as intended. Did I sort of answer the projectiles thing? Your other questions will be answered later.),** **Wolf Lupin (If it's still confusing, please tell me**), ein dwang, Saiera, mikanpan, Authoress Pendragon, Ramen no Tenshi, and **Tiinka (I'm a fan of it both ways... We'll see how I progress because Naruto makes a cute Uke but I rarely see him seme)**_

_I hope I didn't miss anyone; Forgive me if I did, contrary to popular beliefs, I'm not a robot. So, please review and criticize, comment, and inform me of errors. If there's something you don't understand, please tell me. Maybe I'll update earlier than a month next time?_


	4. Entry 04: 080204

**Sorry about this chapter; I _know _there are grammatical errors this time. It was rushed because I couldn't draw inspiration from anything and I've been working on other fun things. And note: All future updates will appear on the second of each month, any later than a few days past the deadline and you can assume that I've died. Well... Enjoy.**

**Warnings:** OOC on everyone in general; strange underlying humor.

* * *

**Title: Realities Away   
By: SukiAme   
Entry: 04 – And So My Life Begins**

_Alter-verse_

Several loud bangs woke Sasuke from his light slumber.  
  
The previous night's events, or rather something that he read induced a long bout of insomnia resulting in obvious lack of sleep, a huge headache, and something pounding the side of his head. Sasuke warily opened his eyes and then closed them before and shook his head to clear the headache and the pounding sensation. Neither stopped; and as the seconds inched by, both conditions seemed to worsen.  
  
Finally giving into the painful affair, he opened his eyes and sat up. He turned his head to his side and stared groggily at a hovering red object. It took him a moment to realize that a hollow and plastic red mallet hung inches from his head. It took another moment before he arrived at the fact that Itachi was sitting on the edge of his bed and holding the said mallet. Then he came to the conclusion that Itachi was the one who was causing the pounding and headache.  
  
"What are you doing?" Sasuke murmured in his half-asleep state as he fell on the bed and pulled the blanket over his head. Before he successfully regained comfort, the blanket was pulled off him causing him to shiver from the cold morning air.  
  
"Sasuke," Itachi said calmly as he moved the blanket away from Sasuke's groping hands, "It's morning; it's Monday; it's not vacation time; you have school."  
  
"I already graduated," Sasuke answered frustrated as he continued his blind search for the blanket.  
  
"Sasuke, if you don't get up, Naruto-kun is going to accept Neji-kun's proposal," Itachi stated in a slightly beckoning tone as he pulled the blankets to the end of the bed and proceeded to tread to Sasuke's disheveled closet for his uniform.  
  
"What do I care what Dead-last does?"

"Would you like to test what I'll do to you if you don't get up?" Itachi asked in a dangerously soft voice. When Sasuke didn't say anything, Itachi threw the uniform on top of him and glanced at his brother who just stared blankly at the clothes. "Get dressed and be downstairs in ten minutes. I'll take you to school."

Sasuke gazed at the door in a dazed form, only semi-conscious of what he was doing as he put on his uniform. While that was done with pain-staking slowness, Sasuke glanced at the red lights of his digital clock before he dashed into the bathroom in an attempt to clean himself.

He splashed water on his face and watched the water stream down and cling onto his stiff-necked white dress shirt. The burgundy red tie with slanted silver-gray strips and black lined border hung in a loose knot which he tightened and fitted it underneath the stiff collar. A pair of gray pants and navy coat with golden buttons and the school emblem attached to its left breast pocket completed the uniform.

He then grabbed a black and silver backpack and shoved various flimsy textbooks in it. He took one last glance around the room before he walked toward his door.

Inconspicuously lying in his path was a thick book which he obviously didn't see for after two steps he tripped over it, the carpeted floor breaking his fall but not muffling the loud crash from impact to the floor. Sasuke spat a loud and long string of curses before he kicked the book under the bed before he slammed the door to his room shut.

-

_I would still like a damn good explanation about where the hell I am,_ Sasuke thought pitifully as he stepped onto school campus only to notice that there were several people glaring at him. All of them were male; Apparently, the rest of the student body was male as well. It was an all boys school obviously, but that did not explain the menacing death looks.

Sasuke ignored the looks and strode past several of them still deep in contemplation, _And what happened to Yoshikawa-san, and Naruto?_ Sasuke stopped and stared blankly at the school building before he shook his head, _Naruto's been brainwashed. That must be it, some screwed up jutsu making him think weird things. Or... that journal...?_

A tuft of familiar blond hair caught the edge of Sasuke's perceivable vision. Sasuke turned toward the boy and shouted, "Naruto!"

At the call, the Naruto turned to inquire on the person who called him, but his searching eyes turned feral when he noticed it was Sasuke; he shut his eyes and turned away ignoring the brunet.

Sasuke frowned at the defiant act as he wondered what was wrong with the blonde. A mental image of the previous evening's events along with a hidden diary floated across his mind. A blush invaded his features as he rolled his eyes toward the gray morning sky and a small sigh escaped him. He was torn between being embarrassed and being angry, but irritation was a nice way to sum his emotions at the moment.

Sasuke approached Naruto and tapped him on the shoulder. Naruto turned and glared at him before he repositioned his backpack and tried to walk away but Sasuke reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Let go," Naruto hissed through clenched teeth.

"Listen, I-"

"I don't want to hear it."

"Look if you're angry about what happened it's because, I don't like you like that."

"Well that's certainly and obtrusive way of putting it," Naruto drawled, rolling his eyes in sarcasm, "No, wait; First it was hitting me, _then_ telling me that. Congratulations, Ice Prince, it couldn't be any more blatantly obvious. If _that _is how you treat someone close to you, I don't know _why _so many girls are infatuated with you."

"Will you stop acting like a pansy? I have a problem here!"

When Naruto felt Sasuke's grip loosen he yanked his arm away, "I do too and the problem is that it's too early for me to deal with you, so quit being an asshole and leave me alone," Naruto snapped angrily as he stomped away.

Sasuke stared after Naruto's retreating back while his eyes were narrowed in a silent and aloof manner of fury. He ignored the curious stares that were tossed his way as he bottled the aggravation for a later use.

But then aggravation comes in many forms and since the gods seemed to enjoy confusing mere mortals as mortals found amusement in tormenting one another; at that moment, it chose the lithe and graceful embodiment of one Hyuuga Neji as the bearer of further vexation.

"Good morning isn't it, Uchiha?" Neji inquired with a polite smile. "I happened to notice your little lover's spat at first. You don't have to answer if I'm prying but what did you do to make Naruto so -what's the word I'm searching for- peeved?"

Sasuke shot a simple glare at Neji before he stiffly said, "Shut up, Hyuuga."

Neji mocked hurt before he remarked, "I'm just concerned about the well being of my dear friend. No need to get snippy." Neji smirked as another thought dawned on him, "Or perhaps my dear friend isn't happy with the way you perform; couldn't perform?"

Sasuke's brows knitted together unable to grasp the colloquial words that Neji had said but his eyes widened in horror when he finally comprehended the implications of the other boy's words. A full scale blush of embarrassment lighted Sasuke's face as his mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water unable to spit a denial, or even an insult.

"Well then," Neji said pleasantly as he walked away with a nonchalant wave, "I don't suppose you'll mind that I dine with Naruto for lunch then. But then again, you don't get a say in it do you?"

At the last moment, Sasuke caught himself and yelled, "Go to hell, Hyuuga!" Several pairs of eyes turned on him at the sudden outburst before he "Sharingan-Glared" them causing several people to sweat uneasily and several other to look away when they felt a cold chill run up and down their spines.

-

**_Kishimoto-verse_**

Sasuke sulked as rested his head on his arm at the windowsill. He gazed blankly at the slowly darkening evening while a thick book laid open on his lap. He couldn't concentrate on it and idly wondered what he was going to do, but every time the thought it out he always arrived on two options. One was to search through all his books and any other book he could find to solve his predicament. The second was to accept fate and do his best as he lived out the life of this ninja, Uchiha Sasuke.

"I hate everything," he sighed in discontent as he looked at the world through half lidded eyes. He really detested everything about this other Sasuke. First of all was the fact that he and Naruto were not together meaning no tender hugs or shy kisses. Second was that Naruto liked this large forehead-ed, pink-haired girl who was apparently on his former _Genin_ team. Third was that he lived by himself, meaning he had to provide all meals. Fourth was that he only had about three different sets of clothes. Fifth was that the Naruto who existed _here_ was so different from the one he knew from home; actually not different, just completely clueless like when they first met. There was more but the excitement of listing everything was just too much for him to comprehend, or so he claimed whilst rolling his eyes.

Then there was the miserable fact that he couldn't find any type of solution to get home, and being an Uchiha made an subconscious and unbreakable law that he was not to ask anyone for help. Something about "if you're too stupid to figure it out for yourself, then you live with your stupidity" was often sprouted from his brother's mouth. Strangely, it worked and got him out of very nasty situations quite a few times, but then again Itachi wouldn't leave him for dead... well, at least not purposely.

There _was_ one instance when he had to retrieve a book from a old and slightly broken down mansion, fallen down into some mysterious room and broken his ankle, then there was this possessed girl who came from nowhere while he was in the mysterious room, chained him up and then tried to adsorb his life energy. But that was only _one_ time.

Sasuke made a face at the memory before he lifted his head and bent over the book to resume his research.

"Well, at least I'm released from the burden of doing all that work," he muttered resignedly, "Thieving isn't as easy as some people make it out to be," he paused and pondered Naruto for a moment and an unpleasant image of Naruto's _friend,_ Neji, came to mind, "Then again, love isn't either."

"Love isn't what?"

"Easy," Sasuke answered immediately without losing his focus on the small print of the book. It took him a second to realize that he just answered someone and his wild stare met with twinkling blue eyes. Sasuke jumped back and landed with his bottom on the floor and flushed while the book fell to a close a few feet from his landing area. "Geez, where the hell did you come from?"

"Door," Naruto answered as he gestured toward the general area with his ever present grin.

"Ever hear of knocking?" the dark haired boy snapped as he bent forward to pick up the fallen book.

"Yep, but for me, it's either stealth or being all out flamboyant," Naruto replied before he continued, "Besides, _you_ should brush up on your skills if you didn't even sense me. You're truly losing your touch, Sasuke. Or you've finally resigned that I'm the greatest." Sasuke looked ready to spit to reply but Naruto changed the subject, "So what's this about _love_ not being easy? Have you finally found a girl _worthy_ of the great Uchiha Sasuke?"

Sasuke heard the snicker behind the teasing question and was torn between beating Naruto until he realized the truth or venting his pent up stress on some other inanimate object. He leaned forward and picked up the book as he chose a course of action and being saner than most people, Sasuke decided to use his words, "Ask me that again and I'll shove a drain pipe down your throat."

"You like someone," Naruto concluded gleefully, "Who? Neji?" At the name, Sasuke blanched, "because you always seemed a little gay, no offense if you aren't; and you act funny when you're with Neji."

The book slipped out of Sasuke's hand and found itself imprinting a mark on Naruto's face, "If you _ever_ suggest that I would like _that_ guy again, you'll find something entirely different shoved into your face."

"What you want to start a fight?" Naruto growled as he peeled the book away and held it like it was filled with communicable diseases, and something he liked to call the "Sasuke Germ" that was something like how children claimed that all other children had cooties but this little pathogen caused you to be moody, angsty and unreasonably cold for no apparent reason.

Sasuke let out an exasperated sigh before he asked, "Why are you here?"

"Oh, that's right, I almost forgot. We've been assigned another mission, B-ranked." Naruto tossed a scroll to Sasuke who caught it with ease, "Think you're up to it?"

"Missions are assigned to ninjas. There are three main rankings of ninjas, _genin, chuunin,_ and _jounin._ B-ranked missions are assigned to the _chuunin,_ or middle ranked ninjas." Sasuke reeled off in a quiet ramble but it didn't escape Naruto's ears.

"Yes, genius; so yes or no?"

Sasuke unrolled the scroll and skimmed it before rolling it back up, "I'm afraid I'll have to decline."

"Oh come on, it's not that hard. All we have to do is go and steal that scroll from those ninjas from Hidden Grass Village and all is well," Naruto unrolled the scroll and pointed at a few numbers, "And look how much we'll be paid!"

"No." Sasuke said, beginning to set camp in his 'stubborn as a rock' campsite.

"Come on," Naruto berated while repeatedly poking at the dark haired one on the shoulder.

"No, dammit! And will you stop poking me!"

"It's good money!" Naruto argued as he prepared to set camp at "whinny brat" mode.

"I don't need it," Sasuke argued just as reasonably which was true. He'd found the account book and found enough ryo 1 to live comfortably for quite a while.

"Think you can't handle it?" Naruto asked with a smirk as he decided to change tactics.

"Must you always goad me?"

"Until you cave, yeah, that's pretty much what I'll to do," Naruto moved to take Sasuke's former spot by the window and sat cross legged on the chair facing Sasuke with a determined expression in his eyes, "Besides, since when did _you_ start saying no to B-ranked missions?" When Sasuke didn't answer Naruto stared thoughtfully out at the evening, "Or I can always ask Neji. It was cool working with him when you were out."

"Neji huh?"

-

Elsewhere in a semi-secluded area in Hidden Leaf Village, Hyuuga Neji approached a wooden door of a apartment building. His lavender pearled eyes traced the curved and intricate markings of the door's frame and the Arabic numeral nine at eye level on the center of the door. The bark colored paint glimmered under the dark illumination of the lamp that hung over his head.

He heaved a silent sigh as he curled his hand into a fist readying himself to knock. He glanced at the opened window and saw maroon curtains floating over the wind's currents while pieces of twine from the frayed ends of the curtains threatened to break and escape the night inside the apartment.

The sharp sound of shattering glass broke the quiet and a loud hiss emitted from the apartment followed by a sharp and high pitch screech of pain.

The dark haired boy flinched at the sound and took a deep breath before he sent two sharp raps on the door.

Then there was silence.

Neji half expected the door to slowly swing open by the slight push of the wind, but a curt, "Come in," shot _that_ theory straight to hell. He asked himself whether he really wanted to step into this darker world, because it wasn't curiosity that lead him here, nor was it the fates; it was his own decision. And if he walked down this path, would there be any turning back?

Fear clenched his heart as he remembered the other person who stepped into this world and never came out; never came back. He shuddered as he swung the door open and before he lost his nerve and ran away, he stepped into the dim apartment. The door shut itself behind him and an automatic lock clicked into place.

A shadow moved to the opened window and pulled it to a close before clicking the lock on the window's latch. Neji's only escape was barred. He was trapped. Thousands of torturous thoughts that invoked sheer horror plagued his mind like a tsunami as he realized he really should have left when he had the chance. He knew that hey wouldn't free him until he stated his reasons for interrupting their ceremony.

In the pitch darkness, Neji saw the one of the shadows move to another room and then returning with a silver platter. The two shadowed figures sat down on a dark leather couch. One of them waved an arm indicating for Neji to sit, but he couldn't.

"We've been expecting you," one of the silhouettes said omnisciently.

"But of course, you're here for another reason," the other spoke mused aloud.

He felt something brush against his ankles causing an unpleasant shiver to run up and down his spine. He stared at where the two shadows sat in the darkness before licking his dried lips with sticky saliva showing a preparation to speak and a sign of nervousness.

"I-" Neji felt his throat dry faster than a drop of water in the Sahara desert but he had to complete the task, no matter how much pride he had to swallow. He paused and wondered why the heck he even cared but saved the thought for further contemplation later. "I... need your help."

- To be continued -

* * *

1 I believe that this is the currency exchange in _Naruto_, but I could be wrong. 

_**Ranting:** For those of you who follow the Naruto Manga: What do you think of Sasuke's recent decision? I for one am having mixed feelings about that entire end to chapter 225 torn between what he said [and what Itachi said], and his conclusion to it. Obviously, we all know he won't do it (Plus it would mess up the series for just about everyone), but the dramatic tension really irritates me. Add to the fact that I'm going to be cursing him until the entire ordeal is over._

_**More Notes**: Thank you all for reading! (Even those who don't review: Hi!) No time to thank everyone this time: Know that I love long reviews and honest opinions, just not brutal ones. Criticize, tell me what I need to clear up, questions, errors on anything; don't be shy, even if my fic sucks, tell me why and I'll learn from it. _

_And to answer the **ULTIMATE QUESTION:**  
**Did you draw inspiration from D.N. Angel?** Yes and no. I was thinking of it when I wrote up some of the traps stuff, but I was mainly thinking of one of Aku-tenshi's other manga called **Thief and Detective**. If you happen to wonder what Sasuke meant by the clothes in the last chapter, that's the basis for the outfit in my mind._

**_And finally: If you can guess who the two shadows are, I'll give you a cookie._**


	5. Entry 05: 090204

**You see... My mind works in a twisted way... no one will understand me, least of all myself. So don't feel bad if you guessed incorrectly. I _try_ to be unpredictable though this was planned a long time ago. **

**Warnings:** Pretty much the same as before. OOCness, some strangeness. Different writing style (POV rather than omnipresent) due to it being rushed; sheer crappiness.

* * *

**Title: Realities Away  
****By: SukiAme  
****Entry: 05 - I Really Don't Want to do this  
**A Chapter Dedicated to Neji 

_Kishimoto-verse_

With his senses completely alert, Neji sat in the darkness and waited. Nothing but silence met him as he focused his stare at the two across from him. Somewhere in the apartment he heard the ticking of the clock and then seven precise rings. Then there was silence.

"You realize that you have to trade something for whatever help you need," he heard one of them say before pausing, "And of course, you realize that you're not going to like it."

He slowly nodded, knowing that one of them would see the affirmation even in the nothingness. It wasn't as if he _wanted_ to be there but for some obscure reason [that he didn't know of], he felt like he owed the guy, no matter _how_ much of an ass he was nor _how_ much he resented and wanted to kill the guy. By doing this, he could rid himself of the debt to Uchiha... even if he wasn't Uchiha.

Besides that fact, it wasn't as if Neji would die asking these two for help. But regardless, it was unnerving to stare at those two in the dark.

"Turn on a light because I'm not about to talk to you all evening in the dark," Neji spat with a hint of bitterness in his voice.

"Oh; Sorry about that," one of them said easily before the room exploded with a white yellow brightness. Neji felt momentarily blind and blinked for a moment before he turned to glare at the person who turned the light on.

The person's head was hidden under large hood of a dark robe so that the light didn't really hurt as much as it did Neji. A slim, pale hand reached for the hood and then brushed it back revealing a smiling girl of sixteen. Her past the shoulder length, navy hair was hidden within the robe while her milky eyes watched him with a confidence that she once didn't have. She moved to sit on one end of the couch along with her accomplice before saying, "I'm still more accustomed to doing this in the dark than light. So... what can we do for you, Neji-niisan?"

"Because, you know that we'll help you any way we can. Unless it's illegal... or wrong," the person who wore an emerald robe jumped up -which caused the hood to fly off- and smirked knowingly, "Or if its love; We can do that even if we have to break the law, right Hinata-san?" He turned to the girl and gave her a sparkling smile before turning back to the long haired boy who twitched while he wondered why the hell the other even _thought_ that he would come to him for love woes.

And what part of Hyuuga Neji even showed anything about liking _anyone_?! He moved toward the edge of the couch he resided on and stared warily at his former teammate, "What even makes you _think_ that I have a problem with _love?_" He hissed before he shook his head, "No, what the hell even makes you _think_ I like someone?"

"That's because-"

Lee yelped when the girl who still sat pulled him back onto the couch while sending him looks that told him not do disclose any information. "Neji-niisan," Hinata began as she turned her attention back to her cousin, "Lee-san wasn't accusing you of anything, merely making suggestions in the case that you don't want to talk first. If it's not true, you still don't have to bite someone's head off. But then again, you should find love soon don't you think? So that you don't have to stay alone forever. There's something called the _red strings of fate_ in which an invisible red thread is bound to your pinky and at the other end is your soul-mate," Hinata smiled sincerely before she gave him a wink, "I _do_ know some people who are interested."

Neji pointed a finger at Lee and barked, "You! What did you do to Hinata-sama?!"

"I did nothing, Neji! Hinata-san can speak however she likes. If anything it is _your_ fault that you don't like the way she speaks," Lee retorted as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

In a way, it was. Neji knew it was his fault. If he wasn't so eager as to get her to get some confidence in a quick and easy way, he wouldn't have brought her to Lee. That was before he found this little cult-like, magic loving hobby of the boy's. Apparently, there was something about the fantasy and science fiction genre that was just "too good" so he just _had_ to role play. After a while, Neji found the term for this obsession of Lee's and it was fanatic.

... She ended up growing her hair long. It was strange to him (We're talking about Neji) because he never saw her with long hair before. She looked... cute; not that he would ever tell her. But he couldn't approach the girl anymore because every time he tried she would sit behind him and fondle his hair. He hated that. And therefore, he damned the energetic Rock Lee for instilling the confidence in her to come near him, and even having the gall to _touch_ him.

Neji shot a glare at his cousin who waved it off by looking away at the cat which Neji assumed was the thing he felt brush against him. The cat circled the table and then hopped on Lee's lap, clawing at the robe.

Then, Hinata suddenly said, "The trade. Our information... for-" She glanced at Neji with a small blush, before she whispered something to Lee who nodded in agreement before she turned back to Neji, "We... we get to play with your hair."

Neji froze as he unconsciously raised his hand to touch his black hair. He stared incredulously at the two robed ninjas before weighing the pros and cons of the situation. After several minutes of debate, the only reasonable voice in his head told him "it's just hair."

"Fine," Neji said through clenched teeth.

He saw both Lee and Hinata's eyes light up before they both ran out of the room. Neji heard a lot of bangs and rustling in the other rooms as drawers and doors were wretched open and slammed shut. Another voice asked him whether it was safe... and he realized, it's never safe. Did he really need their help? Couldn't he just figure it out if he stole their books or something?

A loud clang caused the boy to jump out of his seat and Neji's eyes flickered to the locked door. He decided that he was just going to steal -ahem, borrow Hinata and Lee's books and save himself of this torture. He stood and ran to the door fiddling with the lock by the use of a lock pick that he had hidden in his weapons pouch.

"What are you doing, Neji?"

_Oh crap,_ Neji thought as he frantically picked at the lock and the several other dead bolts that somehow slid into place when he wasn't aware.

"Hinata-san! Neji's trying to escape!"

"Stop him, Lee-san!" he heard Hinata yell, "No one leaves here alive! I mean - Not without completing the deal!" Neji's brain didn't like that Hinata corrected herself and adrenaline pushed him to work the lock even faster.

Several minutes later, Neji wondered how he was dragged to the now cleared living room and held together by chains. His mindset then wondered where the heck did they get chains from? He glared at Lee who sat in before him pulling a brush through his long hair while he felt Hinata doing something from behind him. His head jerked a little when Hinata pulled his hair and he tried in vain to pull away from the girl.

He saw her hand reach into an old tin cookie box filled with beads, ribbons, and clips. She pulled out a hair ornament with a forked end and a red flower with white edges and then her hand disappeared behind him.

"Hinata-sama, what are you doing with that thing?"

"We have a deal," Hinata informed him and then proceeded to ignore him as if he hadn't spoken.

"Hey, Neji? Why are you here then?" Lee asked as he paused momentarily to look questioningly at the boy.

The long haired boy remained silent as he slowly pulled together what he wanted to say. After a moment of silence with Hinata being the only person who moved, Neji finally spoke, "Someone I know is not from here; but technically, he is. I want him to leave because he's more of an pompous ass than before only he can't because he doesn't know how."

"Why doesn't he know how?" A soft voice asked from behind him causing him to wonder just how much he should actually tell them without it being too obvious - or worst, them thinking he actually believes in these science fictional mumbo jumbo.

"He doesn't know what happened," Neji narrowed his eyes when his eyes casted upon the silver chains again, "He claims that he's-" Neji promptly shut his mouth when he realized what he was about to say.

"He's...?" Lee asked only to have the mute Neji turn away.

"Neji-niisan," Hinata began in a soft but stern voice while she continued to work with his soft and voluminous hair, "We can't help you if you don't tell us."

He grimaced when he realized that she was right and resented that fact. He shut his eyes and clenched out, "He _claims_ that he's from another reality if not universe."

Hinata stopped her movements before she slowly asked, "Did you just say-"

"-Another reality?" Lee finished with eyes wide and excited.

- - -

_Alterverse_

There were only so many things that one could enjoy in life and after a while, those things become a bore. So it was what Hyuuga Neji thought when he first entered an all boys high school. From a wealthy family whose history could be traced back to the Tokugawa Era and currently controlling a chain of inns in Hakone and a large investment company; Life had never been quite stable for him.

He'd always had a rocky relationship with his relatives and he really hated the fact that as a direct relative to the Main family, his path in life was already set to manage one of the many branch companies derived from the original company.

Everything he needed came easy for him; through private tutoring, he had learned English, Chinese, French, and Spanish in addition to his native tongue - Japanese. Not only that, but almost all of his schooling was private and therefore, Neji never learned to interact with other people his age.

When he had proposed to be schooled outside the house there were protests but eventually, they agreed to private school. He realized that it was boring - school didn't excite him nor teach him anything that he didn't know yet. He was set to leave and then the new school year began in Spring and on the first day after the brief vacation between the switching of grades, first year with striking blue eyes hit him. It wasn't intentional; the boy just didn't know how to properly kick a soccer (the black and white one) ball.

Call him a masochist but that was the beginning of a strange relationship between Hyuuga Neji and one Uzumaki Naruto.

- - -

Neji pulled at the back of a blond boy's navy blazer causing the boy to stop. He dropped the ends of the coat when cheeky aqua irises met his eyes; he cocked an eyebrow in question to the boy who looked as if he'd forgotten the little tiff he had earlier with his "boyfriend". Naruto shrugged at him before Neji shook his head and looked out the hallway window to the bleachers of the soccer field.

"Want to go to a movie this weekend?" Neji asked though his eyes never wavered from the soccer field, "I heard a new American sci-fi just came out."

Naruto stood next to Neji as he leaned with his back against the window. His head tilted upward and grinned while he stared at the ceiling, "Are you asking me out?"

"Only if you want me to; otherwise, no." Neji replied distantly while his eyes were completely mesmerized by the lush green of the fields. He was filled with a strange desire to go outside but he was completely spellbound. He knew Naruto was saying something to him - he could hear it; but he couldn't listen to the blonde.

"-you do it right?"

"Hm?" Neji forced his eyes away from the distracting color and looked at Naruto who held a malicious grin on his lips while his eyes sparkled mischievously. "Sure," Neji replied to receive a happy and brief neck-choking hug from Naruto. He was delighted to know that the blonde was so excited, but for what he didn't really know. Naruto hummed Merrily while Neji watched the look of contentment fall upon his face. The dark haired boy frowned as he stared at the blonde, "Wait; to what did I just agree?"

"That we're going to set him up with Ino for a date," Naruto answered still staring at the ceiling though he held a maniacal smirk, "I'm pissed at the jerk so we're gonna make him suffer."

Neji would've gaped at him but he was _Neji._ He just didn't do something like that. "I refuse to do that! It's pointless and will bring nothing but misery and annoyance!"

"Which is percisely why I'm doing it," Naruto grinned.

"I meant for me! Why can't you just break up with him and get it over with?" Neji mumbled exasperatedly, "I'd have a better time lounging at home than doing something so vulgar." Neji felt a cheek spasm when Naruto stared at him as if completely appalled.

"You _can't_ be serious! Pranks are the greatest thing in the world!" Naruto exclaimed, "You are crazy if you don't think so!"

Neji opened his mouth as if to say something and then closed it, "You... " He frowned as he walked to the other side of the deserted hallway and leaned against it, staring at Naruto. "Do you really have to go that far?"

"No... not really," Naruto said while the surprise left his face, "But-"

"But it's more fun that way," Neji finished for the boy, "Right?" He thought for a moment and then asked, "But why Ino? I mean, look at all those love letters from Harubana Girl's school that Uchiha gets in his shoe locker; there are more choices than just her."

"She hurt Chouji," Naruto replied defiantly.

"So it's a two birds with one stone kind of thing?" At Naruto's nod, Neji sighed in annoyance before saying reluctantly, "You... are truly one of a kind."

"Oh, come on, you don't even _like_ Sasuke."

The brunet brought a finger to his chin and tapped it thoughtfully, "That _is_ true."

"Why _is_ that?"

"You really want to know?" Neji leaned forward, his face set in a stony expression. Naruto leaned forward as well until he and Neji were inches away from each other. "The reason is..." Neji leaned and whispered into Naruto's ear, "a secret." Neji instantly pulled away and walked away to his classroom.

Naruto's eyes squinted at the bare wall before him. A moment later, he stood erect and yelled down the hall, "You suck, Neji!"

- To be continued -

* * *

_**Ranting:** Oh man... School just started and I'm already suffering through Homework and tests... Argh! Anyway.... I bet no one but someone as deranged as I would've figured the shadows thing... so cookies for everyone! I just wrote an entire chapter to focus on Neji because the first part resulted in being too long so I decided to do the whole thing on him. And also because I'm pissed at Sasuke right now- I hope he rots in the underworld. But I had a interesting time reading everyone's responses last chapter about_ _Sasuke. Especially with the current manga line. Heh, that's why we all love_ Naruto. 

_I'm gonna do the review responses really quickly. I must go finish terms and study for Japanese test tomorrow- Bleh._

_**Thank you for reviewing: Sally11** (... I naturally assumed he did because there was a chapter title in the manga of Naruto, Sasuke, and Lee in formal western clothes. But I could be wrong), Saiera, **Twilight Rose** (very interesting way of interprating it), SirenM, **Ryouseteki** (Love confession? I wish! You seem to have to opposite view of Twilight Rose about Sasuke- heh), **The La/=/er** (I think I'm beginning to love your long messages. Glad you like Itachi considering how much I love him, I try to make him seem like himself. About his books, they were lying right next to the backpack and even in Kishimoto-verse, I'm sure they have _some_ type of rudimentry education at the academy that are similar to normal education so Sasuke should know what the subjects are besides killing people 101), Wolfgirl13, Apple Grace, Icehear19, Dragondame57, C.M. Aeris Queen of Insanity, Gi wo mite sezaru wa ya n, Prodigy-x3-Bombey, Ilweran, **Gogo** (I think I just disappointed you with this chapter- gah! I'm sorry!), Kin Uchiha, Va Va Voom, and Poison Death Tree._


	6. Entry 06: 100204

_A/N: _I didn't start this until... 10/01/04 at 11PM. It is currently 10/02/04 11:25PM. Extremely crappy quality especially in Alter-verse and there are strange time jumps in Kishimoto-verse... **I am so sorry about this chapter **but it was _really_ rushed and I have so much homework that I only get about 5-6 hours of sleep per night. I still have a lot of work I haven't done yet and I only have about... 30 hours before 7:30am Monday. I'll eventually come back to edit this chapter.

**Warning:** Plotting, angst, OOCness, Slash, **soap opera-ish**

* * *

**Title: Realities Away  
****By: Sukiame  
****Entry: 06 – Well... This Never Happened Before**

_Alter-verse_

In the dark setting of the kitchen table, Naruto sat hunched over a set of detailed blueprints with an almost maniacal look of glee on his face while his face wrinkled giving him a fairly sadistic look that would have been called the face of a plotting antagonist had it been fictional. But it wasn't and moments of scribbling and hysterical laughing made Neji wonder whether he should disturb the boy.

Naruto had not slept for days and running on nothing but caffeine and ramen. He poured his heart and soul into making those plans and even spilt blood, though Neji's visiting cousin Hinata claimed that Neji had provoked Naruto; something which Neji completely disagreed on considering that he brought in a tray of cookies and milk while telling Naruto to eat. The blonde having taken the Hyuuga boy seriously, broke skin and Neji had to nurse his right hand. Though the causes of it could have been stress and exhaustion, Neji still believed it was Naruto's fault.

But another part suggested that Hinata might have put Naruto up to it considering he never tried to eat _her_ hand when she tried to get him to eat. But he was willing to put the pain aside for the sake of their friendship and because he had not seen Naruto for the last two days, he didn't want to leave the boy to his own devices. Whatever the blonde was plotting was bound to not have a good outcome and not wanting him to get into too much trouble (knowing that he'll have to clean up the mess), Neji wanted to make sure that everything Naruto will do won't result in something illegal.

"Naruto, are you still alive?" Neji inquired.

As if he did not hear the long haired boy, Naruto continued muttering to himself, "-then he'll get lost in the mountains still handcuffed to Ino. Then fall into this 5 meter hole filled with chickens-"

Neji shook his head while he wondered whether Naruto had gone crazy. He heard occational rambling spilling from the boy's mouth but then it lapsed into the familiar silence. Neji's slippers created a soft pat on the tiled floor of what was a clean kitchen till Hurrican Naruto hit it and walked passed the hunched teen to the white refrigerator. He wrapped a hand around the handle and pulled the door open only to be hit with a cold rush of air.

Glancing at the contents he wondered what to get. There really weren't many choices and gave a mental note to go grocery shopping soon or die from starvation. He selected a can of coffee and pulled it out. Giving the can a shake, he popped the top and began to pour the deliciously sweet and bitter liquid down his throat.

Casting one more look at the blonde who looked oblivious to the world he left the kitchen in desire to watch the news or do something productive. But he was highly disappointed to find that his cousin was already in control of the television and she did not look like she was going to give the remote to him nor did she look like she would willingly give up her spot on _his_ side of the couch.

"I think Naruto wants to talk to you," Neji said as he sat on the other end of the beige leather couch in hopes that she'll get up and leave the remote behind.

"And I think cows can fly and dishes can run but I don't see that happening either," Hinata said idly as she changed the channel from the uninteresting game show to an anime program. She knew this game and she was not about to let Neji have the remote since she never gets to watch what she wanted for the plain fact that he somehow always had the remote control before she did. Hinata thought that he hid it, and it was very likely that he did. He just never told her where it was so she had to search or wait for an opportunity to snatch it.

Now that she had the remote she was not about to give up the privilege.

"Is that sarcasm from shy, helpless Hinata-sama?" Neji asked in obviously feigned surprise.

"Aren't _we_ the cynical one," Hinata replied pushing flipping the channel to music videos.

"I should just tell Naruto you still wet your bed till you were five."

"And I should show him the pictures I have of you dressed as a woman."

"I thought you burned those."

"Only in your dreams, Neji-niisan."

Other than that and the vicious snarling from the kitchen, the next several days were fairly quiet.

-

While elsewhere, at the Uchiha household, Sasuke was coming down with a very random case of allergies. There was a lot of sneezing and occasional chills that caused Sasuke to do little than to complete a few sentences followed by a sneeze.

"I don't understand... I've never been allergic to anything before," Sasuke muttered grumpily having lost sleep from sneezing all night. He pulled a wooden chair out at the dining table and sat on the plush while he tried in vain to eat dinner.

Across from him sat Itachi who was reading a book on art history and value.

Sasuke shoveled rice into his mouth and chewed letting the sweet taste of it dance in his mouth. And then he sneezed, but having successfully swallowed half the rice in his mouth while choking on the other half.

Itachi looked up from his reading and stared Sasuke, who was spitting like a cat with a hairball, before commenting, "Someone really hates you," and then went back to his multitasking of eating, reading, and ignoring his younger brother's apparent problem.

"You know," Sasuke began after his coughing fit finally died and hopefully buried, "You could really be helpful and get a doctor to come take a look at me."

Itachi hummed before saying, "I could, couldn't I?"

"But you won't," Sasuke concluded bitterly, not quite sure of how much he should resent Itachi. He said the only thing he knew he actually felt towards the man, "I hate you."

But Itachi only smiled before he turned the page of his book.

-

_Kishimoto-verse_

Waiting at the North Gate for Naruto and Sasuke was a tall dark haired boy with an irritated frown and a smiling girl with navy blue hair tied lowly, both whom Sasuke did not recognize. The two looked similar in dress in what Sasuke assumed was probably uniform considering that both he and Naruto were wearing more or less the same thing. A dark teal almost olive green vest and a long sleeved dark blue shirt in accompaniment to dark pants of the same color.

"Good morning, Hinata; Shikamaru," Naruto sung in greeting as he waved enthusiastically next to Sasuke as they quickly approached the two waiting Ninja.

"Good morning," Hinata replied as she picked up the brown back pack that was lying by her feet. She glanced at Sasuke before she stood up and shouldered her light pack. She had not brought many weapons considering that she was the Medicinal Ninja but on the pouch strapped to her right thigh held a fair amount of weapons if necessary for use.

Pulling his own backpack up, Shikamaru quickly gave a brief outline of the mission which Sasuke found easy to comprehend but hard for him to actually understand all of it; but he nodded his head and intended to just climb over each obstacle as it came to him, which really shouldn't be that hard. They left the village within half an hour in the order which Shikamaru had given them.

In the front was supposed to be Sasuke while Shikamaru closed in behind him. Hinata came in after Shikamaru and Naruto brought up the rear.

An entire day went by with no specific occurrences that had much importance and then another. On the third day, there was a change in terrain as the paths grew narrower and the forestry thickened.

Sasuke was growing wary and his morale was quite low. If the others that he was "normal" before, then now he was just plain cranky. Naruto's optimistic mood further irritated the morose boy and the one dubbed Shikamaru did not help the situation by throwing the "Naruto is so troublesome" comment every few hours because it only made Naruto even more excited than he already was.

Then there was the Hinata girl who seemed not only to encourage Naruto's fervor but relished in Sasuke's annoyance. From the last three days, he had already gathered that Shikamaru was completely unmotivated to do anything and just wanted to complete the mission.

And Hinata... he did not even know how to describe the girl. She seemed to be the most responsible of the group but there were times when she said strange things that made him stop and think. Not that thinking was bad... but she spoke of things that were involved in her field of work and then of dancing fairies and vicious elves. Sasuke wondered... was she perhaps schizophrenic. She seemed the sanest and at times the maddest of them and if given the chance, she could probably match Naruto in passion for the mission.

She was a sort of enigma and even felt a bit omniscient to him.

-

Sasuke glanced at the retreating figure of the blonde's back before he glared angrily at the bushes that were lying at the side to the path, giving a border to where he walked. His heavy green vest kept him adequately warm but the unpleasant sense of being watched haunted him though he quickly waved it off as his imagination.

A soft voice alerted him as he turned to the navy haired girl who glided past him while her hair tied back in a loose ponytail that sashayed on her back almost like a taunting cat toy. "Something wrong, Sasuke-kun?"

"Why would anything be wrong?" Sasuke snapped in annoyance.

"Because Naruto-kun is supposed to come in last while you're in the front with Shikamaru-kun right behind you; however, it seems that Naruto-kun has passed the both of us. Of course I'm just stating my observations, there's no need to get snippy about it," Hinata said in an oddly complacent way, "Or... maybe you've never been in a ninja formation before?"

As if frozen, Sasuke took several quick steps to pass the Hyuuga girl and stiffly said, "I don't know what you're talking about, Hinata-san."

And he left it at that while Hinata trailed behind keeping watch for any type of movements.

-

The dark haired Uchiha boy hid in the bushes while he observed the other ninjas as he waited for Shikamaru's signal to go in and steal the scroll. Sasuke was miffed. And as he stared disinterestedly at the group of Ninja, his mind began to wander off to the upper orbits of the planet.

There were several factors that fueled his irritation and the first and foremost was that Naruto had said retrieve a scroll. In said it in singular, meaning only one. However, as soon as they had left Hidden Leaf Village, Shikamaru informed him that it was a set of scrolls. Set meant there was more than one. Second was that Naruto had tricked him into going on this so called "mission" by bringing Neji into the picture; He _should_ have realized that Naruto was manipulating him but he didn't. That brings up reason four: Hinata knows. The only person who could have told Hinata would have been Neji and every time he thought of that person, an unpleasant taste of copper filled his mouth and Sasuke knew that it was not blood. And the final reason for his displeasure was that he had no idea what he was doing.

Sasuke followed Shikamaru's orders but occasionally, the team traveled at a pace that Sasuke found hard to keep up with; not that he would ever admit it. And he was not used to having to gather firewood for anything. These survival training skills was precisely why he never joined boy scouts (1) when he was young.

Though this entire experience _does_ remind him of the little trip he took with a few friends (Naruto included) last year and a more laborious form of what he did before felt a little nostalgic.

A large cloud of smoke exploded from the direction of the Ninjas and Sasuke jumped into the smokescreen letting his years of honed skills lead him to the scrolls.

-

"Naruto-kun," Hinata called out in warning but she was a moment too late as she watched the chakra enhanced kick fly towards Naruto's head.

"Shit, Naruto!" Sasuke yelled as he watched the boy crush into the trunk of a tree, splitting the bark like a nail cracking old and brittle wood. Frightened, Sasuke made his way to Naruto's side while Shikamaru stood some ways away in the midst of keeping the two remaining stone ninjas still by the use of his _Kagemane no Jutsu_ (Shadow Copy Technique).

"Sasuke, leave him alone. Hinata, take care of him," Shikamaru chided loudly in such an authoritative voice that Sasuke stopped to glare at him, easily ignoring the pained faces of Shikamaru's prisoners and Hinata meekly jumped from her place in the trees to Naruto's side. Shikamaru's eyes concentrated on the ninjas before him while he tried to think of how to get away now that the four of them were exposed to the enemy ninja. It would have helped had Naruto been up and about by using his _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_ to take care of the few ninjas but with Naruto unconscious, it was quite hard to follow up with another attack considering Hinata usually avoids direct combat and was currently taking charge of Naruto's well being.

Shikamaru had not planned on Naruto pushing Sasuke out of the way of the barrage of attacks, many of which Naruto deflected so that it didn't hit vital areas but the brown haired ninja in front of him had sent a really hard kick to Naruto's head and that now rendered Naruto to be supposedly unconscious.

That was not the most surprising thing that occurred, the most surprising was that Sasuke seemed to have been unable to do anything but watch as the Stone Ninjas charged at him, almost as if he was not sure of what to do. Throughout the entire battle, Sasuke had mostly been dodging and as if it weren't enough, he acted more of a burden than usual. Not to mention the subtle changes in behavior since the last time that Shikamaru had seen him.

"The mission is priority," he said knowing that Naruto would be okay for it was a simple kick to the head, nothing too severe, though Naruto was not moving; he would be fine provided they can get him back to Hidden Leaf Village in one piece.

With a blink of the eye, Sasuke was behind the two Stone Ninjas with his hands raised. Shikamaru, realizing what Sasuke was about to do, released the technique in time to see Sasuke strike the two who collapsed onto the floor in sleep.

A gust of wind blew lightly as Sasuke reached into the robe of the ice blue haired ninja and withdrew a red scroll with the characters for _Ame_ in hiragana writing. Sasuke wrapped his fingers around the rough cloth before he tossed the last scroll to Shikamaru and then silently rushed back to Naruto's side for a close inspection of the blonde.

Shikamaru pocketed the scroll and lazed over to where Sasuke crouched with Naruto's head in his hands as he inspected the unconscious boy for injuries but only seemingly to be hindering Hinata who sent a frustrated glare at Sasuke for preventing her from doing her job.

"Sasuke-kun," she began in a reproaching tone flashing her white eyes, giving both a literal and implied meaning to the idiom, _Shiroi me de miru_ (to look with cold eyes). "If you would please move back a little bit so that I can check Naruto-kun easier, I'm sure it would save all of us some time."

Sasuke opened his mouth to rebut but promptly closed it when he realized that she was right and moved aside giving Hinata space to work.

There was blood coming from the blonde's head that was matting the golden color of his hair into a dark scarlet shade that contrasted prettily with his peachy skin but to both Shikamaru and Sasuke's chagrin, Hinata shook her head indicating that Naruto did not look like he would wake soon.

"I..." Hinata swallowed the lump in her throat as she continued to examine the rest of Naruto's body to avoid having to look at the two waiting _chuunin_. She took a deep breath of relief when she found there weren't any other permanent damages but she felt the anxious gaze of the other two on her while they waited for her to continue. She reached into her pocket and withdrew a light blue handkerchief and dabbed at the blood on the blonde. "Naruto-kun will be okay, but... there may be some minor damage to a part of his brain called the reticular formation. I- think he may be in a coma. But I'm not a hundred percent positive, but Naruto-kun is definitely unconscious. Whether it's actually a coma... I don't know yet."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Sasuke demanded, not exactly hysterical but being overwhelmed by news that he did not particularly like. He could help but to have grown a fondness for this Naruto not that he would ever cheat on _his_ Naruto but the attraction was still there.

"It means that there's the possibility that the part of Naruto-kun's brain that functions with living and the part that functions for everything else like memories, senses, etcetera- is not relying information properly. The best thing to do would be to get Naruto-kun to Hokage-sama," Hinata said as she turned to Shikamaru with the suggestion to leave, "There's nothing more I can do with what I've learned at the moment."

Shikamaru heaved a sigh as he glanced at Naruto's limped body, resting like a sack of rice against the tree. "This is so troublesome," he said as crouched in front of Naruto with his back to the unconscious boy, "Put him on my back."

"No," Sasuke said firmly as if refusing Shikamaru for Naruto, "I'll carry him. We were on the same team after all."

Knowing better than to argue in a circle with Sasuke, Shikamaru shrugged as he helped Hinata put Naruto on Sasuke's back as they began their trek back to Hidden Leaf Village.

-To be continued-

* * *

_I know... that was so badly written. And Alter-verse wasn't long at all. But the next chapter of it will be longer alter-verse than Kishimoto-verse... And the coma thing... so soapy but it was a friend's suggestion and at complete writers block, I just took it._

_If I want to make the deadline, time's ticking away, it's almost 12! Thank you all for the reviews! Sorry I can't respond this time but I'm sure I gave you a lot to criticize about! (But I'm looking forward to 100th review). Perhaps it will be a flame?_

_BTW: Chapter 233 was amazing! I've been hanging at the narutofan forums discussing it._


	7. Entry 07: 110204

_AN: Please bear with the slowness of this chapter and I'll see you next month._

**Warnings:** Oocness, slight slash and long paragraphs.

* * *

**Realities Away  
****By: SukiAme  
****Entry: 07 – A New View; Plots Unveiled**

_Alter-verse_

In the warm quiet of mid-afternoon, Sasuke wandered about in mesh of a park. Birds did not call to one another and a steady rush of currents rang against the banks of a river. A sudden gust of wind beckoned the clouds to cover the sun casting shadows upon the earth for a moment, sending chills down the spines of the people. Then there was silence before the sun reappeared, peaking from behind the clouds.

Sasuke had not exactly chosen to be there, at least not directly. He had wanted to pour through the last few pages of that journal he'd found when he had first awaken, but a certain blond coaxed him to coming to this park which looked quite close to dreary. Aside from wanting to finish the journal, there was also the previous factor in which he did not know where this park was located. Asking Itachi was not a very easy thing for him to accomplish, and he had to quash his (which he might admit to, under duress) overbearing sense of pride. The latter was not helpful having tossed him a map, light jacket, and out the door. And by some odd way, Sasuke wondered whether it was typical to have your _brother_ do such things to torment him in ways other than psychological damage.

On a plus side, the allergies had subsided and he no longer felt the need to sneeze every thirty seconds. The doctor had come, Itachi eventually decided it was necessary, and had found that nothing was wrong, which was strange considering Sasuke had not stopped sneezing for so many days. But he was not going to question the miracle of his sneezing cessations.

And then Naruto called. There was something strangely compelling about the boy who kept saying, "If you don't come I'll hogtie you and drag you there," and "Please? I have something important to tell you." The threat made Sasuke smirk at the ludicrousness of that ever happening but it was the second phrase that caught him by the throat. Naruto had said it in such a tone that sounded quite serious and a little weary.

A mental image of Naruto crying found its way to Sasuke's mind along with a strange sense of worry that actually came before Naruto called.

Two days prior, in the midst of his sleeping, Sasuke had a dream. It was an odd dream that worried him but he could not remember what the dream was about. There was a familiar rush of watching a fight unfold itself and then he remembered his heart stopping in surprise. But no images came to his mind as he tried to conjure the scene again. He remembered the feeling and that was all.

So there he was, wandering in the forest-like park waiting for Naruto to appear.

"Sasuke-kun!"

At the high pitched squeal, Sasuke felt his ear twitch at the familiar but unwelcome frequency. With his eyes at a half closed state, Sasuke turned toward the noise and saw a platinum blonde head bobbing toward him with a strange enthusiasm that he did not share. He mentally kept himself from twitching as the girl strode up to him with an overly sweet grin on her face.

"What do you want, Ino?" He asked curtly, not even bothering to shield his blatant annoyance.

"What a wonderful coincidence this is," Ino commented as she latched onto his right arm. Her pony-tailed waist-length hair bounced as she rested her head upon his shoulder while he gently tried to pry off her hand only to be unsuccessful. She snaked her hand around his and pulled away for a moment, her forest green skirt floated in place contrasting a white short-sleeved blouse. "It must be fate."

Sasuke frowned while he continued to shake her off without commenting to her.

"Hey Sasuke-kun?" Ino began, coyly snuggling up to him, "Let's go on a date."

"No."

He wondered with amazement whether Ino realized that he was trying to get her off him or not. Sasuke understood that his own gesturing was steadily growing more violent but apparently, so did the girl's grip.

_Where the _hell _is Naruto?!_ He not so mildly wondered trying to glare at the girl whose eyes were closed in content.

-

Naruto watched the plot unfold itself from his place in the bushes with a disconcerting frown etched on his lips. Why? It was because he was not happy. Sasuke had not reacted the way that he had wanted him to, which was strange because Sasuke always reacted in a way that he predicted. It kept stability in his life but the ebony haired boy had been acting very strange lately. It was almost like he was dealing with a person with a different personality but, there were still elements of _Sasuke_ in the puppet. And Naruto could not help but not enjoy watching his supposed "Ultimate Revenge No. 147" being enacted by this erratic Sasuke.

Turning his head to the boy who crouched next to him in an indifferent manner, Naruto pouted casually, "I think I'm jealous."

His long haired companion blinked blankly at the blond before asking what his reason for being there was only to receive a offhanded wave of the hand and a mumbled, "Must extract revenge" in the very manner that Naruto's been displaying for the past several days.

Naruto idly wondered when he should step in to actually begin part two of the plan since part one was not proceeding as well as he'd like. He turned half his attention to a leather brown backpack by his legs and pulled at a zipper, hoping that neither Sasuke nor Ino would hear it. Well, Ino was not a problem, but Sasuke might suspect something but that was not going to help the boy in the present situation.

A rainbow of neon colors came from the insides of the bag and Naruto poked at one with a twisted grin on his face. He pulled at the elbow of Neji's shirt and nodded, quickly zipping up bag to conceal the objects inside.

"And now, part two."

-

"See you at school, Neji!" Naruto shouted from the platform while Neji got on one of the trains at the station. He enthusiastically waved an arm while Sasuke stood morosely glaring at the blond, brunet, and the state of his clothes. He was sticky and it was not a very pleasant experience to be at the receiving end of Naruto's twisted sense of humor.

When the train disappeared, Naruto clasped his hand folded neatly behind his head while the leather bag swung freely from his shoulder, the grin ever present on his face. "What a great day."

"You're annoying. Shut up."

"Don't be weenie, Sasuke," Naruto said as he turned toward the boy with a smile, "It-was-fun."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes and said lowly, "I'm _stick._ I _detest_ sugar and you've coated me in a carbonated drink; no, let me correct that, _several_ types of carbonated drinks that consist mainly of _sugar_. I think I'm entitled to hate you at the moment."

Naruto feigned horror and commented, "Blasphemy! Sugar is God! No wait, I take that back, caffeine is God. But it's still blasphemy!"

"Typical."

"And how can you hate me? _I_ don't hate _you,_" Naruto frowned as he watched the red and yellow train approached the station.

"I'm _sticky!_ And I _hate_ sweets. _And_ you're responsible for this!"

"It was worth it 'cause you were a jerk," Naruto shrugged easily. The bright early afternoon did not bring many people and getting on the train was not a problem during this time of the day. He stepped inside the car as soon as the doors sprung open closely followed by Sasuke who sat next to the blond in one of the many plastic seats of the nearly empty car. "And Ino was a jerk."

The brunet merely scowled in a frustrated manner and refused to acknowledge the other boy's existence. He stared straight ahead, gazing outside the windows of the train with an intense sort of concentration as the scenery flew by.

"Oh come on, what do you want me to do about it? I'm justified!" Naruto said pulling his pack off his shoulder and dropping it to the empty seat on his left. He settled in his seat and waited for the snippy response that never came. "It's settled, we're agreed. I had a good and legitimate reason."

"No."

"Then what the hell do you want from me?"

"I don't like being sticky."

"You want _me_ to clean you up?" Naruto asked incredulously only to receive strange looks from the few people in the compartment. He reddened a light shade and ducked his head behind his bangs.

"Yes."

Naruto's jaw slacked before he hissed in Sasuke's ear, "What am I, your mother?!"

Sasuke did not answer as he looked out the window again.

"I'm still mad at you, you know?"

-

_Kishimoto-verse_

Sasuke leaned against the blank hospital walls before he slid to the floor. He grinned wearily as he stared blankly at the floor. Overcome with a bitter sense of fatigue, Sasuke closed his eyes and waited. He might have fallen asleep; if he did, he did not realize it because he wore no watch nor was there a clock on the hallway. Upon the cold floor he listened.

"Would you like some water?"

Sasuke looked up to see Hinata standing before him with a cup of water in her hand, extended in offering. He shook his head and glanced at the door in vain hope of it opening with good news. But then, no news is good news, there was still hope.

"I would like to talk to you, Sasuke-kun," Hinata began turning away from him and down toward the exit of the hallway, "Accompany me on a walk." Sasuke looked up at the girl ready to protest before she said in a lightly fridge and quiet tone, "That was not a request."

"What right do you have-"

"I'll tell him. And everyone else."

Sasuke mentally cursed having told Neji anything and hesitantly got up to follow Hinata outside to a small garden. The world was strangely bright and sunny and clashed quite unhappily with Sasuke's mood. The two walked along one of the roads in silence. Sasuke slowly relaxed as he soaked in the sun and momentarily forgot about his troubles and just lived.

"It's nice isn't it? The sun I mean." Hinata held the cup to her lips and tipped it back pouring the water in her mouth before swallowing it. She crushed the cup in her hands and scanned the area for a nearby garbage bin. When she had located it, she excused herself for a moment and tossed the paper ball into the can. She looked over at him and saw a dazed expression of confusion; deciding to get straight to the point, Hinata opened her mouth and began to speak, "Sasuke-kun, may I ask about your relationship with Naruto? You seem a lot more, what's the word, intimate than usual.

"There's also something that has been bothering me about that mission; you did not really participate in the fighting also like you were lame. I did not see you use any type of techniques with the exception of _taijutsu_ and, though it was rather impressive, was fairly rudimentary _taijutsu_," Hinata paused and fondled her fingers, fully aware that Sasuke's attention on her was unwavering. Perhaps it was surprise, or shock. Though she had a lot more confidence than before, she still held an element to her former personality and his scrutinizing gaze made her uncomfortable.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and mentally cursed Neji for it not having been a love interest problem rather than Sasuke. Yes, she had to admit that she _was_ rather interested in the problem and what happened to shinobi Sasuke, but this Sasuke was surprisingly attentive of her former crush. Of course, that was not a bad thing and she was not going to condemn him for his lifestyle but that did not help the sanctity of her mind.

Then she remembered that she was supposed to be helping him.

"You know that I know that you're not from here, or even this world. Neji-niisan has asked Lee-san and me to help you," Hinata let go of her fingers and stared at him with all seriousness. The unease left her and she nodded with the wind, "I've been doing some research at my family library while Lee-san has been checking records from the village library.

"But let me ask you, do you like it here?"

Sasuke's eyes dropped to the ground with his hands shoved into his pockets. He kicked at a pebble that bounced a little ways wondering how he should answer. He looked up at the clear sky and closed his eyes letting the wind hold him for a second.

"Yes. As twisted as it may sound, it's peaceful here. I would like to live somewhere like this," Sasuke opened his eyes and turned to face Hinata, "But I want to go home. There's someone waiting for me."

Hinata did not answer for a moment but just observed the joy from the small smile on Sasuke's thin lips, "Naruto?"

Sasuke nodded contently.

Hinata's head drooped for a little while and then tilted it to look up at him. She grinned and said, "Understood. I'll help you with my utmost effort, so will Lee-san. But I have a few questions: Do you remember what happened before you got here?"

"..." The fringes of what happened brushed the side of his mind before he quickly shooed them away, "No. I don't recall anything specific that would be significant."

Hinata frowned at the far-away look in his eyes before she shrugged it off, mentally reminding herself to analyze it later. He was hiding something. Neji had said something about him having been attacked and something about seals. Hinata assumed it was some type of technique that went array, but Sasuke apparently knew nothing of it. The research was not fruitless in that Hinata found a lot of interesting information but it was not relevant to Sasuke's case.

There was something that Sasuke was reluctant to talk about and Hinata wanted to ask but a nagging voice told her to not. The voice was annoying and sounded particularly like her cynic cousin though the other voice that kept encouraging her to do it reminded her suspiciously like Lee. She shook away both voices and just smiled, "I think Hokage-sama should be just about done, don't you?"

- To Be Continued -

* * *

_Outtakes that I was not able to incorporate into this chapter due to excessive OOCness. Think of it as AU within my AR fic:_

**WARNINGS: SLASH!**

_Alter-verse_

"You want _me_ to clean you up?" Naruto asked softly.

"Yes."

The blond blushed and slowly reached for the brunet's shirt, pulling at the buttoned collar of his coat. His eyes caught the pink flesh of Sasuke's neck and a strange desire to start necking with him ignited in his chest. He hastily shook his head and pulled the sleeves from Sasuke's left arm.

The brunet boy turned to his other side to make it easier for Naruto to pull the coat off. A moment later, he was free of the sticky coat he noticed quite suddenly that Naruto had his hands on his right hand and had yet to let go.

"Naruto?"

Naruto brought Sasuke's sticky hand up and without giving Sasuke any warning, he began to lick the sticky substance from his hand.

Sasuke froze, not having to want to lead Naruto on. Based on what he read, Sasuke and Naruto had a very close relationship. It was intimate more than physical which was hard to find regardless of whether you were male or female.

"Naruto?"

Naruto leaned close to Sasuke and gazed into dark eyes. He leaned his forehead against Sasuke's and blinked as a nostalgic sense of calm flowed though his body. Sasuke's eyes glanced away from the openly pleading face before him. Naruto tightened his grip on Sasuke's hand as he whispered, "Please don't turn away from me."

Sasuke's eyes unwillingly went back to the angelic looking boy who usually looked like Satan in disguise. Unaware of his dazed state, Sasuke slowly leaned forward and planted a chaste and tender kiss on the other boy's lips.

Shocked, his eyes that had closed of their own will sprang open is surprise. But he didn't want to pull away. For some bizarre reason that he did not know of, he did not want to pull away. So he didn't.

-End-

**Amusing outtakes:**

Ino's story: As she trudged home, her white blouse and green skirt soaked through, she pulled a sticky hand through her hair that was stuck together like cement. She screamed angrily and cursed Naruto, "Damn it Naruto! You suck –censor- and –more censoring-! How dare you! It'll take forever to wash out the sugar!"

-

Naruto's plan: Sasuke sitting in the boat with Ino. Naruto and Neji sneak up on them. Pelt them with water balloons that are filled with soda. Run like a madman off on speedboat. Find hive of bees –failed-. Fire ants –failed-. Make Ino run off crying –successful-. Piss Sasuke off –successful-. Weasel ramen from Neji –failed-.

* * *

_**Ranting**: I am so sick right now. There's only four and a half more report card periods... I need more sleep too. Remember to sleep all you can before you're actually forced to stay awake due to homework!_

_Naruto chapter 237: Ah, Yokatta na, Naruto! Ganbatte! It was cool. What insight but Kishimoto is being too obvious with the team seven paralleling the sannin. I cannot wait to see how the next three years will go, and though I'm a bit pissed at Sakura's reasoning for asking Tsunade about that thing, I show more respect for her now... at least she's not going to stay useless. And I'm downloading 238 RAW now._

_Double review responses:_

_Thanks to Muchacha, Byushi, monkan, Wolfgirl13, Renn, Hikaru, Sally11, ILLK, Kin Uchiha, Saiera, Sierra-Falls, HikariChang, TheTrueSilver, ririka1, me, **Gi wo mite sezaru wa ya n** (Due to my time and workload, I'm afraid I can't do more than one update per month. And about lemon... I'm not good enough to write something like that... Sorry but thank you for sticking with me); **The Laer** (Glad you liked Hinata. And did I ever say that Neji liked Naruto? Hm...) Kyuubi-kun, **Ryouseiteki** (I still have yet to decide whether I want Drama or not. Would the people like it?) and to anyone else I might've missed, thank you!_

_Please review, criticisms, suggestions, flaming? (I keep expecting one)_


	8. Entry 08: 120204

_AN:_ And Now I'm getting twisted.

**WARNINGS:** OOCness (that's a given); strange drama

* * *

**Title: Realities Away  
****By: SukiAme  
****Entry: 08 – Tell me because I need to know**

_The icy evening breeze stung on Sasuke's pale skin. The numbing chills hit him fully as he dropped to one knee, unable to keep himself upright any longer. His dark blazer whipped about him as if the wind carried it. His eyes were filled with an unconcealed surprise and horror as he tightened around the letter in his fist._

Shit,_ he thought in disbelief, _It can't be true.

_The paper slipped out of his grasp and flew away, dancing in the wind._

_Forcing himself up, he mechanically walked, not quite knowing where he was going but resigning to the unconscious thought that he will meet with them. They must have lied because Naruto was not capable of doing such a terrible, terrible thing. His innocent, pure, and undefiled angel was just not capable of such a thing. Angels didn't hurt others, rather they saved people._

_But the little voice in the back of his mind questioned, why _can't_ Naruto do something like this? If he lived alone, struggling through the harsh bitterness of his life, why couldn't he do something like this?_

_-_

"_Naruto," Sasuke said, "is this true?"_

"_What difference would that make?"_

"_Answer me!"_

"_What can you do if it was true? Nothing," Naruto spat cynically turning away from him, "I don't try to pry into your past so leave mine alone."_

"_But you-"_

"_Do you love me?" Naruto interjected, his voice raising in a demanding question, "If you do, love me for who I am because I love you for who you are. I don't care about the past and I don't try to bring it up, some things are best left buried, Sasuke."_

"_But they tried to threaten me," Sasuke retorted, "Isn't that enough for me to wonder what I've gotten myself into when they use you against me!"_

"_I'll take care of this," Naruto said in a soft and controlled voice, "Just trust me."_

_Sasuke watched Naruto's retreating back. He let out a frustrated sigh as he turned and walked away wondering how to cope with the twisted feeling in his chest._

Sasuke's eyes flew open with an unvoiced gasp lodged in his throat and his heart racing. His eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, making out the shadows on his ceiling as he breathing calmed his heart. His hand made way to his head and he covered his eyes.

'_A dream,'_ he thought, _'No; it was not a dream, but a memory; not even an old memory.'_

Rolling over, he tried to fall back to sleep but it never came. As the rosy dawn peaked beyond his window, Sasuke sat up and pushed aside his blanket. Sitting at the end of his bed, he watched the sun rise.

-

Standing before the Fifth Hokage, Shikamaru took unusual care to stand properly and stare straight ahead.

"-completed with minor injuries. Hyuuga Hinata performed well enough to have ensured Uzumaki Naruto's stable health until we returned." Shikamaru paused thoughtfully before he continued, "I would also like to point my concern at Uchiha Sasuke's performance on this mission. Though he successfully retrieved the scrolls, his movements were awkward and he slowed down after a few days into the mission. It may be due his body not having completely healed on his previous mission in which Naruto had informed me therefore I think it would be in his best interest if he be put on sabbatical to give time for his body to heal."

"I understand what you're saying, Shikamaru; I'll think about it. You may go now."

Shikamaru opened his mouth and looked like he was about to say something when he snapped his mouth shut and nodded before leaving the office.

Tsunade gazed at the papers that littered her desk but she didn't see it. Her mind was elsewhere thinking about the blond haired boy who was laid unconscious at his home. It was only unconscious and she thanked the other Hokages that it was not more. For a split moment, she had thought that he was going to slip into a never ending sleep but he didn't. Though how long that boy was going to sleep, she really didn't know.

But the point is Naruto was going to be fine; the problem at the moment was Sasuke. It was obvious that Sasuke had seemed reluctant to go on the mission as Naruto had told her before he had left. Oddly enough, she had felt that Sasuke would be needed on this last mission and she had told the blond to convince the brunet to accept the mission. Now that she thought about it, when Naruto protested in concern regarding Sasuke's wellbeing she had thought it as his ruse to not have to work with him.

Previously, he had protested on the grounds that, in his words, "Sasuke is a show-off who takes every chance he gets to insult me. I don't want to work with him anymore." Of course, Naruto had said that while whining like the brat he was, so she had not taken any notice of it. But perhaps he was right, and right now she was paying for it with her anxiety over the brat's welfare.

_I'm going to kill him when he wakes up,_ she thought with a feral grin marring her face. She frowned and turned her thoughts to a few other things that recently plagued her mind.

The Hyuuga family had reported an attempted break-in to their compound. To say she was surprised was an understatement. No one dared to break into the Hyuuga house for fear of many things. But aside from the Hyuuga's famous _taijutsu_ and _Byakugan_, their house contained many valuable objects not just of their property but from all over the village. Some people entrusted their sacred belongings to the family for sake of security due to the _Byakugan._

And if someone was trying to break-in, and be able to get away, this was no ordinary item.

The Hyuuga family refused to give their inventory list but they assured her that nothing was missing.

-

Neji watched Lee pull three books off the shelf and pile them into the large stack in his arms. The dust particles floated in the air causing a musky odor of age to linger in the room. "Lee, you really don't have to rush this. No one cares whether Uchiha can get back home or not. Frankly, _I_ don't care."

"This isn't about Sasuke-kun," Lee replied as he eased the stack onto the beautifully furnished mahogany table. He plopped in the chair besides Neji and took one of the books off the stack and eagerly opened the cover. "I'm in the _Hyuuga_ Library. This place is as old as the village itself; I'll never get another opportunity like this!"

"You do realize that if you just persuaded Hinata-sama, you'd have complete access to this building."

"Yeah, but Hinata-san-" Lee seemed to have caught himself as he silenced and idly flipped the pages of the book, skimming the printed words.

The unfinished sentence caught Neji's attention as he turned to look at Lee with a peaked curiosity. "But Hinata what?" At Lee's uneasy laugh and sped up page turns Neji's attention was completely taken, not even aware that he'd drop the polite suffix he attached to his cousin's name, "Well? What did you intend to say?"

"Nothing," Lee laughed as he closed the book in his hand and picked up another manuscript and began skimming, "Really. I don't know what you're so paranoid about."

"I'm not paranoid about anything; why won't Hinata let you come here?"

"I never said she didn't."

"You implied it."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Lee, you-"

The sound of a door opening silenced Neji.

-

"I deem your mission a failure, and I'm not paying for you to fail. How don't care how you do it but I want that scroll and if I don't get it soon, I'll have you killed."

"You want to kill us?" An un-named ninja laughed cynically, "Don't make me laugh. Without us, you wouldn't be able to even get near that scroll let alone take it."

A snarl caused the ninja to flinch with his small team hovering behind him. The Ninja glared defiantly at the man, "I'm not afraid of that stupid pet of yours."

"I'm afraid it's not Ao that you should be frightened of." He murmured, petting the ebony panther by his side.

A moment later a loud snap came from the ninja along with a tortured scream of agony.

-

_Alter-verse_

"_You're not Him. You look and sound like him, but you're not."_

"_What are you talking about?" Sasuke muttered in quiet frazzle, his heartbeat increasing at a considerable rate when Naruto shifted in his seat and faced Sasuke's profile._

"_You don't respond to me at all. And I feel nothing when I'm with you. Tell me who you are?"_

Sasuke pulled his coat closer to himself as he walked to Naruto's house. He had not seen Naruto for a few days because Naruto was apparently sick. He didn't know what to do, wondering whether he should just tell Naruto and be done with it. But things are never that simple.

First of all, if he was to tell the blond, there was a chance that he might think that he's insane. Heck, it's currently his life and he finds it surreal. Then provided that Naruto doesn't think of him as mad, he'd have to convince him that he's really a ninja which really shouldn't be that hard. Then he'd have to see whether Naruto knows anything that could help him.

But that was the problem. He had no clue as to how he was supposed to tell Naruto when he finds everything unbelievable. And considering his name was exactly the same as this other guy's, Naruto being Naruto might just get confused and result in being a useless waste of air and space.

Stopping in front of a house with the name "Uzumaki" in front, Sasuke paused and considered what he wanted to say and in what order. After standing in deep thought for ten minutes, he rapped the door.

Moments later, the door opened to a man who looked like Naruto with unruly blond hair and aqueous blue eyes, but the man's face was more chiseled and held a strong look of dignity and pride. For a split second, Sasuke thought he recognized this man but brushed the thought away, reasoning it impossible; he would have remembered this face, even in his world.

"Yes? Can I help you with something?" The man asked, his eyes narrowing at the boy.

"Good Evening. My name is Uchiha Sasuke and I'm from Naruto's school. Is he home?" Sasuke recited in an almost robotic manner.

"Yeah, please come in," the man moved aside for Sasuke to enter and while Sasuke took his shoes off, the man closed the door behind him, calling for the younger blond, "Naruto! A friend's here!"

Leading Sasuke to the living room, the man told Sasuke to sit while he went to get Naruto. Sasuke complied and sat down.

Glancing around, he noticed that the home was a lot smaller than the one he was currently living in but it was larger than his apartment. Sasuke looked around the room, taking in the homeliness of it all. His eyes caught photographs on the shelf and he stood to examine them.

In one picture were the blond man and a brunette woman holding hands in western wedding attire. The two glowed with a certain type of brightness and looked very much in love. Next to it was a photo of Naruto giving the victory sign as he held out a medal dressed in his dirty soccer uniform. Beside that one, was one of the man, woman and Naruto having a picnic at what Sasuke was assuming was _Hanami._ Then there was a picture of the woman standing in a floured apron with a mischievous grin on her face.

"She's dead you know," a familiar voice came from behind him.

Turning around, Sasuke saw Naruto looking at him in miffed questioning. He stretched a little causing his white t-shirt ride a little before he dropped his arms to settle down, as he peered at Sasuke. Lowering himself on the quilt that covered his leather couch, he pulled his legs up, sitting in a cross-legged position still looking a little groggy.

"Why are you here? I was enjoying my sleep."

"Your father looks like you," Sasuke commented as he returned to the couch to the left of the one Naruto decided to occupy.

"He's not my father," Naruto replied with a yawn, "He's my uncle. So why are you here?"

Sasuke unconsciously nodded, "You are right," At Naruto's confused expression, he continued, "I mean, back on the train, what you said was correct. I'm not that person."

"Then who are you?"

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. Ninja rank: Chuunin; Home: Hidden Leaf Village in Fire country. I am a ninja and I have no idea as to how I got here, if you'd like I can-"

"Prove it?" Naruto supplied, cutting off his words, "No need. Even if I don't want to believe you, doesn't mean I'm going to make you defend yourself. You are you, if you want to lie, I can't exactly stop you."

"…" Sasuke frowned in frustration, "No, you're not supposed to say that! You were supposed to-" He stopped at mid-rant, realizing that he was doing Naruto's whining, the one that he had always hated, "Never mind. You don't think I'm crazy?" Naruto shook his head and Sasuke sighed, "Then will you…" The dark-haired boy twitched as he tried to force the last word out, "Help me find my way home?"

Humming, Naruto's finger tapped his chin thoughtfully.

A soft ticking of the clock slowly grew louder and louder. Sasuke was getting anxious about what Naruto would say and the stretching quiet was hurting him a bit more than he was willing to admit.

"Okay."

Letting out a breath that he didn't even know was held, he looked over at the boy who had rearranged himself to lie on the couch. Sasuke gripped the edges of the mocha leather couch and pinned his eyes on the glass coffee table.

"So, what can you tell me about," Sasuke wrinkled his nose a little bit, frowning in distaste at having to say his own name in a case other than introducing himself, "that guy," He finished.

"What do you want to know? Or rather, what would you like to know?"

"Anything you know about him up until the time you gave me," A nasty piece of that memory hauled itself to the top of Sasuke's mind of that particular event, "that tour."

Naruto thought about it for a moment, nodding his head. "I suppose you know of my relationship with him; mind you, it wasn't intimate in the physical aspect but…" Naruto trailed off for a moment before he continued, "Well, I don't really see anything of great importance. He was an interesting character and he surprised be quite a bit with some of his life. Sasuke works doing something, I'm not quite sure what it was; I never asked him and he never really told me.

"But his job probably involved some fairly strange things. He was getting involved in something he probably should've left alone."

"What was it?"

"Sasuke, he-"

To be continued…

* * *

_AN: I know, it's a little short this time around isn't it? Well, I just felt they were good places to stop until I write the next chapter. I'm considering updating the middle of this month for many reasons. Erm… The main one is because well… it's the holidays and the 24th is my birthday, heh. So I'll update then to make up for this short chapter._

_I hope you got the really subtle stuff in this chapter. My weak attempt to show that Sasuke does feel an attraction to Naruto but you must realize that he's in a crisis at the moment; no time to think about love!_

_**Thanks for your reviews:** QianYun (Ara, you've changed pennames! Happy you enjoyed the train scene though I should remind you, it didn't happen in the fic. And regarding Neji, we'll just have to see what happens), Kaelas, animelvr4evr, Danya2, Gi wo mite sezaru wa ya n (I can't even picture myself writing that. Just leave it to the imagination; well... I can try but rest assured, it's not going to happen in this fic. Maybe another one), mkh2, Shiomi (Wai, it's Shiomi-san! I'm speechless XD I cannot believe you read my drivel, wai.)_

_Thank you everyone. And remember, looked for an update on the 24th of December!_


	9. Entry Gag Chapter: 010205

Welcome reader. I am aware that you expected a full chapter however, due to unforeseen circumstances (and the fact that I want a bit more SasuNaru action), I have written something that is a bit of a review of the past eight chapters but mostly filled with what you've all been waiting for: SasuNaru-ness (of sorts) and a few other strange pairings that may cause you to shy away or quirk an eyebrow in question. Either way, if you choose to read this chapter, you're pretty much screwed.

Though I'm certain that this is completely irrelevant to the fic itself and everyone is quite obviously out of character, I hope you will enjoy it our beloved character's private life. Now let us begin.

**Title: Realities Away  
****By: SukiAme  
****Entry: Gag – So what Happens off the fic? What we took out.**

* * *

_"Go!" Sasuke commanded Naruto as he prepared to fight the three ninjas that appeared._

_Naruto paused and stared incredulously at Sasuke, "I - "_

_"Go! One of us has to protect Yoshikawa-san!" Sasuke said again more forcefulness, "Don't stand there like an idiot! I'll catch up!"_

"But Sasuke, I don't want to leave you," Naruto retorted locking on to Sasuke's arm, his eyes pleading, "I have this horrible feeling that something bad will happen if I leave you."

Sasuke bowed his head and then pulled Naruto towards him. He put his hand under Naruto's chin and tilted the blonde's head to look into his eyes. Planting a small kiss on Naruto's cheek he gave a hardly visible smile, "I'll be fine. Go."

-cut-

"I would never say something so girly! I demand a rewrite," Naruto yelled pointing angrily at the small group of writers, "If you don't, I'll quit!"

"Fine, we'll take it out."

-:-:-

_"Sasuke?" Naruto cautiously strolled up to him and stared closely at his eyes, then he back up looking miserable, "You've lost your memory haven't you? This is my fault... if I had been alert, those guys wouldn't have tied me up and you wouldn't be hurt. It must've been those hand motions that the guy was making. You can't even remember that this is your room. Do you remember me?"_

_"Naruto... I haven't lost my memories. I know who you are." Sasuke scoffed, "It'd take a hell of a lot more than a kunai to my shoulder to forget you." Sasuke opened a door to what he assumed would be a closet only to find a bathroom. "Damn it, where's my friggin' shirt?" He cursed as he slammed the door shut._

_Naruto gave him a slightly mocking smirk, "You seriously have no idea where anything is, do you?" Naruto asked as he received a glare from Sasuke, "And I still don't know how you got that cut." Naruto gingerly touched Sasuke's shoulder and rested his head on it, all traces of his smile was gone. "Sasuke, I'm sorry... For what happened."_

Sasuke stared at Naruto with a glazed over look as he tried in vain to rid the thought of how nice it was to have Naruto resting against him and how cute he was when he sounded so sincerely sorry. With a distraction like Naruto, who really cared if he had no idea where he was.

"Naruto," Sasuke's hand found itself entangled in Naruto's hands before he pushed him back and onto the bed. Naruto blinked, staring up at Sasuke with a blush graced on his face, "You know you are very attractive don't you?"

Before Naruto got a chance to reply, Sasuke leaned down covering the small of Naruto's mouth with his own. The kiss was long and the first one was always sweet and always exciting, and to Sasuke's surprise, he didn't want to lose contact with Naruto. There was a satisfying shiver that ran down his spine when he licked Naruto's mouth beckoning the boy to open his mouth which the boy did.

He took a little time to explore the crevices of Naruto's mouth as his hands moved on their own, slowly unbuttoning Naruto's shirt. A small moan escaped Naruto's lips when Sasuke-

-cut-

"Stop," Neji interjected jumping in front of the camera pointing at the writers, "This is supposed to be rated PG! I refuse to watch Naruto be subjected to your twisted fantasies!"

"If you don't want to watch, then go away, Hyuuga! We're a little busy at the moment!" Sasuke yelled irritably at the long haired boy giving him the middle finger and shooting an icy glare.

"I won't have you do such things to Naruto in PG fic!" Neji shouted at Sasuke, stomping over to the two boys on the bed ignoring all the dark looks that Sasuke threw at him.

"What if we let you do –censored- and –censored- and –censored- to Naruto?" one of the writers asked Neji.

"**Hell no!**" Sasuke protested jumping up and glaring at both Neji and the group of writers, "_That guy is not going anywhere near Naruto!"_

It was hard to say who started the fight but Naruto got away unscathed when Shikamaru mumbled something about it being troublesome and luring the boy away with a bowl of ramen.

-:-:-

_A small snap reached Sasuke's ears and within the next millisecond, he pushed Naruto over and onto the wooden floor. "Get down!" As Sasuke fell forward and shielded Naruto, he heard several whizzing sounds fly past his head and then a pattern of loud donks as the projectiles struck the wall._

_Then a slow clapping filled the rooms, its loudness magnified as the sound waves bounced off the walls. Sasuke pushed himself off the blond and searched for the source of applause but froze in horror to see Itachi leaning against the frame of the entrance, watching the two listlessly._

_"Itachi." Sasuke spat viciously as he unconsciously activated his sharingan._

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. You killed my father, prepare to die." Sasuke said getting into a defensive position.

Itachi stared noncommittally at Sasuke before saying, "You stole that off of _The Princess Bride_. Don't start stealing lines from movies little brother, it's not becoming and you just can't pull off the same amount of coolness."

"How dare you say I am not cool?! _You're_ uncool!" Sasuke pointed accusingly at Itachi with a glare.

"I don't really care what you say," Itachi replied not even bothering to glance at Sasuke's insignificant being which peeved the younger Uchiha to no end. "Besides, not only am I better than you could ever wish to be, but I believe Naruto-kun is willing to follow me more than you."

"You lie," Sasuke said turning to Naruto and shaking him, "Tell me he's lying. Who would you choose; me or Itachi?"

Naruto gazed at the older Uchiha with adoration, "Ramen!"

-cut-

"That's not even in the fic! Damn it Itachi! You're cheating! He's weak against ramen!" Sasuke shouted cursing his brother who held a bowl of ramen in his hands holding it just out of the blond boy's reach.

"I'm not cheating. What's wrong with exploiting someone's weakness for your own gain? Nothing," Itachi replied, lowering the bowl to give the blonde, patting him on the head like he would a puppy. "You're just angry you didn't think of it first."

_He's right,_ Sasuke thought somewhere in the depths of his mind but he would never admit to it. "Damn it, I want him fired!" Sasuke shouted to the writers, "Or at least scorched a little bit!"

"As in burned?" asked another nameless writer, "I think we can do that. Actually, never mind. We can't burn Itachi; he's too pretty to be marred by fire. The only thing that can hurt him is a sword or other dangerous weapons with a sharp edge and any other physical or psychological trauma. It's an anime law."

"Damn it! I get no justice!"

-:-:-

_"I'm leaving," Naruto announced abruptly as he angrily trudged to the exit of the library. But before he completely left Sasuke alone, he muttered a distinctive and bitter, "Jackass." _

Sasuke leaned back as the wall shelf supported his weight. He brought his arm to his mouth and rubbed it like a madman. His eyes were hard as he focused his stare to the broken lamp. He lowered his arm and slid down to the floor, completely appalled by the entire incident.

When Sasuke realized that Naruto was leaving he pushed himself up and ran out of the room only to find that Naruto was nowhere to be seen. A sudden irrational fear coursed through him. What if he never sees Naruto again? What if Naruto actually was going to abandon him after that small incident?

He really hadn't meant to hit him. It was just reflex. He hadn't thought that Naruto would kiss him. Naruto really shouldn't have kissed him like that when he'd known that he was a little disoriented. Though, Sasuke had to admit, that he _had_ asked Naruto to tell him.

It was technically his fault.

And if that was the case of their relationship then if it were the other way around, Sasuke supposed that he would be a little upset too. It would also explain that moment of excitement he felt when Naruto was so close to him and even that prang of loneliness he felt.

"I am such an idiot." Sasuke muttered covering his face with his hands, his shoulders shaking for reasons that even he didn't understand.

"Yeah, you kind of are," a voice came from behind him.

"Shut up," Sasuke snapped, refusing to look at the man.

"Let me rephrase that, you _are_ an idiot," Itachi leaned against the frame of the library door watching Sasuke.

"Damn it! I thought you were fired," Sasuke yelled pointing at Itachi with a sharp glare.

"Sorry, Luv; that's not going to happen any time soon," Itachi said with a smirk, putting one hand against the wall next to Sasuke, pinning him there. He leaned down closely to his younger brother and said, "You see, I can't seem to leave you alone because if I do, you'll lose your purpose in life which is to try to kill me. But I don't want you to because I-"

-cut-

"Stop! You're too close to each other," Naruto yelled cutting in to Itachi's short monologue. He ran up to the older Uchiha boy and stepped between the siblings, glaring at Itachi, "Incest!"

"Naruto-kun," Itachi leaned down and-

"Lech!"

After a moment's flurry, Sasuke was standing protectively in front of Naruto breathing heavily as if he had been running. Itachi on the other hand was sitting on the floor, nursing the large red handprint on his cheek shooting dark looks at Sasuke.

The writers gathered and after a moment's consideration took out that scene.

-:-:-

_"You recovered yet?" He interjected with a light (concerned) tone._

_"Yeah, pretty much," Sasuke answered suavely as he took a step toward the blonde, "Are you worried about me?"_

"Well, yeah," Naruto mumbled looking away from the dark haired boy, "sort of."

"Really," Sasuke asked slyly, stepping closer to Naruto with a seductive smirk on his lips, "Well I'm feeling loads better now. Would you like to test how energetic I feel?"

Naruto looked at Sasuke with a hopeful perk, "Let's go then! A sparring match! Winner takes loser out to ramen!"

_That was not what I was thinking._ Sasuke shook his head, taking Naruto's arm, "Actually, was hoping for something a little different."

"Like what? Oh, how about who can catch the most fishes with his bare hands," Naruto suggested, his eyes lighting up with a kindling sort of fire, "Let's go! I'm BURNING!"

_I know that that is not supposed to have a double meaning but if he says anything else like that I'm going to be forced to jump him._

-cut-

"What do you want _now_, Neji?" asked one of the writers.

"Uchiha is having dirty thoughts! I know that glazed over look! He's having lecherous thoughts of debouching Naruto!"

"And how would _you_ know, Hyuuga?" Sasuke asked narrowing his eyes as if appalled to hear such accusations. He crossed his arms and gave Neji a pointed look, "Could it be that _you've_ had such thoughts and accusing someone else to cover your own shameful actions?"

"You want to take this outside," Neji snapped pulling Sasuke by the scruff of his shirt.

"Security!" Naruto yelled to have two men in uniform march over. As he pointed at Neji and Sasuke, he said, "They're causing a problem in filming. Please escort them out."

"Naruto," Neji and Sasuke scolded at the same moment while the guards began to drag them away.

"Hey," Naruto said waddling to the writers, "What does lecherous and debouching mean?"

"You don't want to know," answer one of the writers.

-:-:-

_"Must you always goad me?"_

_"Until you cave, yeah, that's pretty much what I'll to do," Naruto moved to take Sasuke's former spot by the window and sat cross legged on the chair facing Sasuke with a determined expression in his eyes, "Besides, since when did you start saying no to B-ranked missions?" When Sasuke didn't answer Naruto stared thoughtfully out at the evening, "Or I can always ask Neji. It was cool working with him when you were out."_

"No, not with Neji. I don't want you seeing him any more."

Naruto cocked an eye and asked cynically, "What are you, my mother?"

"Lord forbid should the day that ever happens," Sasuke murmured turning away from the other's scrutiny.

-cut-

"What was that supposed to be? Are you insulting my mother," Naruto demanded, roughly shoving Sasuke against the wall. He eyes were shielded with a layer of anger as he snapped, "Just because I never had a mother doesn't mean you can insult the woman who gave birth to me! How would you like it if I started insulting _your_ mother?! Or did she find you so much of an abomination that she'd rather leave you than raise you?"

"Shut up! I'll –censored- (note: Swears were omitted due to ratings) kill you, you motherless –censored-!" Sasuke shouted just as angry as the blond before he threw a punch at Naruto.

Repressing the groan of pain, Naruto glared spitefully at Uchiha before jumping on him, delivering several blows in the process. They got to a point were the furious swipes caused scratches and bruises forcing more security to step in to stop the brawl. When the clouds had cleared, Naruto and Sasuke were standing atop a pile of unconscious bodies, breathing heavily, their backs facing one another.

They made a picturesque image of a pair of long time partners despite their resentment towards the other. And then all hell broke loose when they decided to turn on each other now that the problem has been resolved.

After several moments of cursing and painful moans, the writers decided to leave them to calm down; they hoped that the duo would patch things up and miraculously, they did. But of course, that is another story.

-:-:-

_"Want to go to a movie this weekend?" Neji asked though his eyes never wavered from the soccer field, "I heard a new American sci-fi just came out."_

_Naruto stood next to Neji as he leaned with his back against the window. His head tilted upward and grinned while he stared at the ceiling, "Are you asking me out?"_

"Well," Neji replied bringing his attention to the boy next to him, "It really depends on what you mean when you say 'asking me out.' I meant it in the most literal sense when I invited you; how you chose to interpret that is entirely up to you," Neji leaned closely to Naruto with a smirk on his lips, hardly an inch away from the blond, "Isn't it?"

"Neji-kun," Naruto began getting a mischievous sparkle in his eyes, "I do believe that _you,_ my friend, are trying to seduce me."

"And if I am," Neji whispered in an almost husky way, his warm breath glazed over Naruto's cheek as his fingers unconsciously traced the blond boy's jaw line, "What will you do, Naruto-sama?"

"I-"

-cut-

"I'll kill him," Sasuke screamed in fury, his Sharingan eyes activated as he jumped onto the set a set of shuriken in one hand and a shining new kunai in the other, "I'll –censored- kill that –censored- think he's so great Hyuuga!

"How dare you even speak my Naruto like that," Sasuke rambled angrily, pointing his kunai in Neji's direction, "Much less touch him!"

"My, my," Neji began as he pulled away from Naruto and crossed his arms, sneering at Sasuke, "Aren't _we_ jealous. I'd never picture _you_ as the type to get all riled up like this, Uchiha."

"Shut the hell up, Hyuuga!"

"Hey," Naruto said pulling Neji's attention by pulling at the other boy's long black hair. With a completely clueless pout he asked in all seriousness, "Why is Sasuke jealous?"

"I," Sasuke gritted through his teeth, miffed and advancing on the pair, "Am _not_ jealous!"

"Well, Naruto," Neji began closing his eyes in lecture and nodded to a nonexistent wind, "When little boys grow older, they begin to realize that they feel a lot more for certain things or people. There are many reasons for that, one would be that they learn more words to express how they feel. Another would be that little boys and girls hit this stage called puberty and a large mass of hormones are released. For boys, it's something called testosterone and this chemical causes changes in your body and increases your sexual drive even. That is why Uchiha behaves this way."

Had Sasuke not been restrained by several other well known cast members who have and never have appeared in this fic, he would have had Neji dead by that point; or at least maimed.

Naruto nodded his head in understanding, "I see," with a wicked grin on his face, Naruto continued, "So you are causing an increase in Sasuke's sexual drive which means that he's jealous of me!"

"…" No one present knew how to respond to that except for Shikamaru.

"Yes, Naruto," Shikamaru sighed, deciding to humor him. His hands were in his pocket as he paced about the background, away from the scene that Sasuke had caused, "Sasuke is jealous of you because he wants Neji's apparently hot and sexy body."

"And the hair," Hinata piped from restraining Sasuke who looked ready to not only kill Neji but beat some sense into Naruto and maybe Shikamaru who was cynically supporting Naruto's idea.

"Oh," Naruto nodded, bopping a fist on the palm of his hand, "Then that means that Sasuke likes Neji, right?" Not waiting for a protest from anyone, Naruto continued his rant, "Well, that kind of sucks because I liked him. But I'll support you, Sasuke! I want you to be happy!"

"No, you're wrong!" Sasuke protested, finally able to, "That's not right! The one I like is-"

"It's okay, Sasuke," Naruto said backing away from Neji, winking at his teammate. "I'll get a rewrite if it means that much to you, you don't have to cause a scene."

"But I _hate_, Hyuuga! I really like-"

"Maybe I can even ask the writers to do a little something, something for you two."

"Naruto, you're being an idiot. Uchiha doesn't like me, I don't like him. Uchiha likes-"

"I get it, you two don't have to hide it any more. But I'm a little sad now," Naruto sighed walking away towards the writers' room, "Maybe I can get a happy scene with someone else."

"Stop acting so dejected, Naruto-kun! We have to turn that frown upside-down," Lee said going after him, "Let's go run laps!"

Shikamaru sighed with an apologetic wave at Sasuke and Neji not that he really cared but Naruto was really just asking for an answer and he couldn't answer without being sarcastic, "I think I'll go get some ramen or something. Do you want to come, Naruto?"

"I love you, Shikamaru!"

Back at the set, two very angry bloodline limit users growled under their breaths, "I will _kill_ that Shikamaru."

-:-:-

"_You know," Sasuke began after his coughing fit finally died and hopefully buried, "You could really be helpful and get a doctor to come take a look at me."_

_Itachi hummed before saying, "I could, couldn't I?"_

"But you won't because you're a twisted psychopath," Sasuke replied bitterly sinking into his arms as he sent sharp glares at Itachi, "I hate you."

"I'm so glad," Itachi replied, idly flipping the page he had finished, "I hope you realize that you argue like a five year old girl."

"I do not!"

"Yes, you do."

"I do not times infinity."

"Thank you for giving an example, oh great genius."

"Shut up, Freak."

"Brat."

"Murderer."

"Weakling."

"Jerk."

"Twit."

"Pretty boy."

"Why thank you."

-cut-

"Erm, do you Uchiha brothers think you could stop calling each other names?" asked Writer no. 1.

"Even Sasuke and Neji aren't this bad," added Writer no. 2.

"Please, even Sasuke and _Naruto_ aren't this bad," Writer no. 3 put in.

"That's because Sasuke loves Naruto," Writer no. 4 chimed.

"Did you realize that all the arguments consist of Sasuke?" commented writer no. 5.

"He's very demanding _and_ hard for everyone else to get along with," said writer no. 2.

"Maybe we should fire him," suggested writer no. 5.

"I would consent to that. We can make me the protagonist rather than my younger brother," Itachi said approaching the group.

"That's not such a bad idea," writer no. 3 remarked with a nod.

"You can't do that! What would Naruto do then?" Writer no. 4 said.

"You can't do that! Your readers would be angry!" Sasuke snapped throwing his fork down on the table, "They want to see me and Naruto get together!"

"You; Itachi; it's all the same." Writer no. 5 stated.

"Could you two siblings please get back on set? I would like to leave before the end of the world or those fans kill us all." Writer no. 1 said pointing back to the set.

-:-:-

_A soft voice alerted him as he turned to the navy haired girl who glided past him while her hair tied back in a loose ponytail that sashayed on her back almost like a taunting cat toy. "Something wrong, Sasuke-kun?"_

"Yes, in fact, there is," Sasuke said glaring at the back of their leader's head with distaste. "I don't want Naruto going anywhere _near_ that lazy bum. He's plotting something I'm sure. Did you hear what he made Naruto say earlier?"

"Actually, Shikamaru-kun didn't make Naruto-kun say anything. Shikamaru-kun merely jokingly answer Naruto-kun's question about you and Neji-niisan. It was obviously a joke and yet you are taking this far too seriously," Hinata commented as she held on to her backpack straps pulling it, "And then Shikamaru-kun decided to go eat. It really wasn't his fault that Naruto-kun said 'I love you' to him."

"Yes it was! If he wasn't in this fic, I would kill him."

"You're not being fair, Sasuke-kun. What did Shikamaru-kun ever do to you?"

"He turned _him_ against me," Sasuke commented, gesturing at Naruto, "Come on, Hinata-san, you must be at least a little upset. I mean, you're obsessed with Naruto to the point of stalking. And to hear him say-"

"I do _not_ stalk Naruto-kun," Hinata snapped, loosing the shy façade that she usually put up in front of everyone save Lee and Neji, "Nor am I obsessed with him. If anything, _you're_ the obsessive stalker!"

"What? How, pray tell, am I," Sasuke pointed at himself, "An obsessive stalker? _I_ don't stalk anyone, especially Naruto."

"You always appear whenever he has a scene. Whoever the scene is with, you get completely snippy and almost hurt the latter person forcing our poor writers to rewrite the scene; usually, that person is Neji-niisan. First of all, why are you always there when Naruto-kun has a scene? Secondly, how do you seem to know where he is all the time? Thirdly, why are you so upset when anyone gets even remotely intimate with him?"

"I do not," Sasuke denied.

"Yes you do."

"I don't times infinity."

"You argue like a five year old," Hinata said dryly.

"No I don't dammit! Have you been talking to Itachi," Sasuke demanded.

-cut-

"I have no comment for this nostalgic scene," muttered one of the writers.

"I think I like her," Itachi commented leaning against a wall as he watched the scene being filmed.

-:-:-

_Shikamaru heaved a sigh as he glanced at Naruto's limped body, resting like a sack of rice against the tree. "This is so troublesome," he said as crouched in front of Naruto with his back to the unconscious boy, "Put him on my back."_

"No," Sasuke refused for the unconscious Naruto, "No thank you. I will carry Naruto." Surprisingly, Sasuke was able to say it in an obnoxiously sneering way while giving Shikamaru a very pointed look, "Wouldn't want Naruto to be molested now would we?"

Shrugging, Shikamaru helped Hinata put Naruto on Sasuke's back. "It'd be a pain in the ass if he was," Shikamaru drawled to Hinata who was walking with him. "I would not be surprised if Sasuke tried to though. But I don't really give a damn about Uchiha's well being."

"But you care about Naruto-kun right?"

"That's only because he's my friend."

"Shikamaru-kun," Hinata said quietly, "Do you like Naruto-kun like the way that Sasuke-kun likes him?"

Shikamaru stopped walking and raised an eyebrow at Hinata, "You're kidding me right? First of all, it's _Naruto_. He's loud _and_ he's a pain the butt. I pity the person who is going to be his partner in life. Secondly, I'd sooner like _Ino_ in that way than Naruto but that's not saying much. Women are troublesome."

"Thank you so much, Shikamaru-kun," Hinata replied a little sarcastically at his insulting of the female gender, "As if men are so holy. Oh look, I'm a man; I like to get drunk; I don't know how to pick up after myself; I get laid _all_ the time. Pig." She said spitefully before she tramped off the set.

-cut-

"What the heck?" Shikamaru asked confused.

"I think she's been talking to Tenten," Neji supplied glaring at the set.

"Why are you here?" Shikamaru asked Neji. At Neji's silence he realized that behind him, there was still a slightly intimate scene occurring between a possibly sexually repressed Sasuke and an unconscious Naruto. "Oh crap, I left them alone. Ah, it's too troublesome." By the time he finished what he said, Neji was already gone.

"I am not responsible," the boy muttered as he wandered off to find something else to do.

-:-:-

_Then there was a picture of the woman standing in a floured apron with a mischievous grin on her face._

"_She's dead you know," a familiar voice came from behind him._

_Turning around, Sasuke saw Naruto looking at him in miffed questioning. He stretched a little causing his white t-shirt ride a little before he dropped his arms to settle down, as he peered at Sasuke. Lowering himself on the quilt that covered his leather couch, he pulled his legs up, sitting in a cross-legged position still looking a little groggy._

Sasuke glanced away from the boy as he wondered whether Naruto realized how tantalizing he looked in his striped oversized pants and t-shirt. And his tired stretching looked positively wanton causing Sasuke to feel unnecessarily hot. And since Naruto was in his half-asleep state, would he even realize what was happening should Sasuke decide to ravish him with kisses?

Of course he would, Naruto wasn't _that_ unconscious, but the thought couldn't help but flutter across the outskirts of his mind.

But no, he must restrain himself. He didn't want to scare Naruto nor did he actually have or want any type of intimate relationship with him. Besides, it was bad, wrong, a sin. Naruto was his friend; more importantly, Sasuke had a problem at the moment so he would just have to deal with it. So he sat down a little distance from the blond.

"Can I do something for you?" Naruto asked his eyes half-closed as he gazed at Sasuke.

And then Sasuke mentally cursed at Naruto. How can he ask something like that? Did he not realize that there were double meanings to that? And that expression was a little too much even for _him_. Sasuke felt himself shaking from something that was repressed because he forced his stiff body to move further from the blonde. He had to keep control of himself. There would be nothing good save the few moments of self satisfaction should Sasuke lose control of himself.

"Naruto," He began, his hands clenched in a tight ball. "I… have a problem. And I want you to help me with it."

After he heard what he said, Sasuke mentally slapped himself. He couldn't believe that those words actually came out of his mouth. The words "I want you" brought on more impure thoughts in his mind and he actually say "help!" That word did not belong in the Uchiha vocabulary.

Torn between a carnivorous desire and pride, Sasuke didn't know how to proceed with the rest of the conversation. And then, to his horror, Naruto moved, tucking his legs to his side as he propped his head up with an arm that was supported by the couch's armrest. The lower half of Naruto's shirt rode up revealing his peachy yet pale abdomen, it was flat and he knew there was not much excess fat but his muscles weren't defined enough for one to say that Naruto regularly exercised.

Naruto was his seductive torturer, his charming executioner and had his tormentor been a woman…

"Alluring temptress," were the words he uttered before-

-cut-

"I think Sasuke is acting too angst filled," Neji commented with crossed arms, casually sending glares at Sasuke.

"I am not! I mean, shut up," Sasuke snapped sitting back in his armchair, "I'm not falling into that trap again."

"Hey," Naruto said sitting up so that he looked decent. Then again, he wasn't aware that he had been indecent either, "What does 'alluring temptress' mean?"

Itachi, who had shown up to watch the scene filmed, said to Naruto, "I'll tell you if you come with me."

"That's what it means," Neji said before he glared at the writers, "And what the hell do you think you're doing, writing angst with a hint of it hitting PG-13? Any more and it would've started bordering R. _Well_?"

"Erm," the writers looked away guiltily, "We were reading angst R fics…"

"We should cut out the angst," said Writer no. 5.

"And take out the fallacy," added Writer no. 2, "This _is_ after all, a PG fic."

"You can never take out _all_ the fallacy," Writer no. 4 informed Writer no. 2.

"True; because then it would just be no fun because we can't write that way."

-_end chapter-_

* * *

_AN: Well, I hope you enjoyed it. _I _enjoyed it at least. If you wonder about Hinata, I'm a bit of a feminist so I'm having fun stereotyping. If I haven't scared you off, please stay tune for the next chapter which gets a little wacky and a little twisted but mostly wacky._

_Review responses: Thank you for reviewing!  
s (-wide eyed- you love me?! Yay! –heart-), SaLLy11 (I going to _try_ to make their return believable but I think things are going to get a bit more confusing with the next chapter), kurokioku, __Gi wo mite sezaru wa ya n, Momichi Zabuza (Thank you for the wish and I hope this gag chapter satiated your SasuNaru desires for a little while), Princess Krystal01, Iceheart19, Kaelas, QianYun (gack, how did you know I was shoving everything in?! –guilty- Sorry you don't get any answers in this chapter though XD), xxphatxbaybeexx, Danya2, and cheesemaker._

_And I'll see you next month! I should be able to have a better grasp on what will happen next. And Happy 2005 everyone!_


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